Transdermal Drug Delivery Strategies for Antidiabetic Therapy: Current Progress and Future Perspectives of Dapagliflozin

Diabetes mellitus is a chronic metabolic disorder requiring long-term pharmacotherapy to maintain glycemic control and prevent complications. Conventional oral antidiabetic therapy often faces limitations such as poor patient compliance, gastrointestinal side effects, first-pass metabolism, and fluctuating plasma drug concentrations. Transdermal drug delivery systems (TDDS) have emerged as a promising alternative for the administration of antidiabetic agents due to their ability to provide controlled and sustained drug release, improved bioavailability, reduced dosing frequency, and enhanced patient adherence. This comprehensive review discusses the recent advancements in transdermal delivery of antidiabetic drugs, including insulin, metformin, sulfonylureas, GLP-1 agonists, and SGLT2 inhibitors. Special emphasis is placed on dapagliflozin, a selective sodium-glucose co-transporter-2 (SGLT2) inhibitor widely used in the management of type 2 diabetes mellitus. The review highlights the physicochemical properties of dapagliflozin that make it a potential candidate for transdermal delivery, various formulation approaches such as patches, microneedles, nanoparticles, and permeation enhancers, as well as challenges associated with skin permeation and drug stability. Furthermore, the therapeutic advantages, recent research developments, and future prospects of dapagliflozin-loaded transdermal systems are critically discussed. Overall, transdermal delivery of dapagliflozin represents a novel and patient-friendly strategy that may improve therapeutic outcomes and expand the scope of diabetes management.