Design of a plaster containing benzoyl peroxide loaded microsponges to support acne treatment

Microsponges, one of the new drug delivery systems, are of interest in the pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries due to to their many advantages over other carrier systems. Although microsponges are widely used in pharmaceutical science and many other fields, it is noteworthy that there are limited studies in textile technology. In this study, it is aimed to investigate the potential of microsponges in the textile field and to provide a guiding literature for the textile industry. This study consists of a plaster design to be created by applying microsponges produced with the benzoyl peroxide active substance to a textile material. As active ingredient was benzoyl peroxide (BPO), which is widely used in acne treatment. Microsponges were obtained by emulsion solvent diffusion method using BPO active substance and ethyl cellulose polymer. Characterization studies were performed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), differential scanning calorimeter (DSC), fouier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), X-ray diffractometer (XRD), porosity and particle size analysis. Optimum microsponge formulations were applied to cotton and polyester fabrics by impregnation, spraying and dip coating methods. In-vitro drug release studies were performed of the treated fabric. The samples were combined with addhasive plaster tapes obtained from commercial suppliers and made of silk, cloth and synthetic transparent materials.