Abstract

Background: Microspheres are one of the potential lung delivery systems for lungs and respiratory diseases because of their ability to encapsulate various types of drugs, biocompatibility, high bioavailability, protect drugs from environmental effects such as humidity, heat, oxidation, and can release drugs in a sustained or prolonged release. The suitability of microspheres to be delivered by inhalation is determined by the characteristics and release of the drugs from the microspheres. The characterization and release study of microspheres is influenced by several factors such as the type of polymer used, polymer concentration, polymer ratio, type of crosslinker, the concentration of crosslinker, and method of encapsulation.
Methods of review: This scoping review consists of 32 publications from the periods between 2007 and 2021. Publications were extracted from a search engine using various keywords. Data of publications that met the criteria were extracted manually.
Conclusions: This review focuses on the characteristics and release of microspheres for inhalation using polymers and various encapsulation methods.

Key words: Microspheres, inhalation, characteristics, in vitro release, respiratory diseases