Microneedle Technology for the Management of Bacterial Skin Infections

Bacteria-induced skin infections pose a serious threat to human health. However, the current treatments through conventional administration routes suffer from the problems of low drug delivery efficiency, off-target side effects, and poor therapeutic efficacy. Recently, microneedle (MN)-mediated antibacterial therapies have shown great prospects in managing skin infections, owing to their ability to enhance drug delivery efficiency, load a wide range of therapeutics, and provide theranostic functions. In this chapter, we first summarized the classification of MNs and their advantages in treating skin infections regarding enhancing drug delivery efficiency and real-time monitoring of antibiotic pharmacokinetics. Then, we mainly described various therapies and improvement strategies for managing skin infections. Furthermore, we provided detailed examples of the design of theranostic MNs that enable self-reporting disease status and on-demand drug release. In summary, MNs have opened up a promising avenue for managing bacterial skin infections.