Bucks County Firm Using 3D Printer To Create Medications
By Ian Bush
LANGHORNE, Pa. (CBS) - The production line at a pharmaceutical company based in Langhorne, Bucks County looks very different from other drugmakers'.
Far from mere novelty, Aprecia Pharmaceuticals is 3D printing drugs for a real benefit:
"We're focused on using new technology to make medicine easier to take," says Aprecia's Tom West.
High doses that usually take the form of big tablets or large capsules are made much more palatable with what the company calls ZipDose, says West:
"It's designed to break apart in your mouth so you don't have to swallow it intact. It feels much more like liquid, essentially, going down."
Instead of ink on paper, their printer spreads thin layers of powder and a binding solution. Aprecia's drug Spritam, designed to treat epilepsy, is made this way. It's set to launch early next year.
The company is concentrating on central nervous system disorders, but West says the future of 3D-printed pharma could target rare conditions or help doctors drill down to individual doses.
