Did you know that the worldwide pharmaceutical market is worth $1,204.8 billion? This is such a huge amount at stake. The goal is to maintain high-quality medication and services to meet consumers’ expectations.
Satisfaction can only be achieved through constant innovations, made possible by technological advancements.
The best part about the pharma industry is that it adapts to technological disruption fast. Learn more about the most recent changes to drug development resulting from technological advancements here.
Incorporation of Artificial Intelligence
Artificial intelligence is becoming popular across a range of industries. The Pharma sector is not an exception.
This technology entails the use of computer systems to handle complex tasks.
Artificial intelligence saves time. It streamlines tasks that would otherwise demand human intelligence. These include speech recognition and decision-making, which are all crucial aspects in the medical field.
It also makes it easier to translate information across different languages. In return, artificial intelligence accelerates the discovery and development of new drugs. The technology applies best during clinical trials and fraud detection. This improves the overall medication quality.
Biotechnology
This is the technology behind the development of new drugs from the existing ones. Biotechnology helps experts research and identify experimental drugs that other developers may have stopped working on.
The researchers then fight their way into the drug approval. They do so by improving their development processes and methods.
One of the biotech CEOs, Vivek Ramaswamy, came up with a fundraising initiative to give life to old drugs. More companies may follow this route. This makes biotech a continuous thing to improve treatments and create employment.
3D Printing
3D printing has become more accessible in a variety of sectors.
Medical experts and scientists are taking advantage of this technology to create printed organs using bioprinters.
The introduction of 3D printing in the pharma sector has also opened a new horizon in medical research and development. Personalized medicine is becoming a reality. Even better, researchers can now 3D printed tablets.
Other uses of 3D printing in the pharmaceutical industry include;
- Customized implants
- Prosthetics
- Surgical planning anatomical models
3D technology has made it possible for medical experts to create tablets in any size and shape. They can also personalize each patient’s drug dosage.
Moreover, the technology makes it easier for researchers and developers to regulate the number of active substances in every tablet. With this, they can replace or remove some components where need be.
Generally, 3D printing technology promotes efficiency. It ensures that the drugs meet every patient’s needs.
Integration of Blockchain Technology
Blockchain was initially designed to ease cryptocurrency trading.
However, it is rising in other sectors such as the pharmaceutical industry. This is due to the combination of its unique features that you cannot find in other technologies.
This technology creates significant impacts in various drug production and distribution stages.
It ensures data security and privacy. Such aspects are crucial considering the sensitive nature of medical data.
Blockchain has also made it easier for researchers to identify substandard drugs. In return, this maximizes patients’ safety. It minimizes the number of deaths caused by substandard medications.
Even better, blockchain promotes the digitalization of transactions. The process is an efficient solution for tracking the pharma transaction systems. In return, this fosters security.
Other potential uses of blockchain in the pharmaceutical industry include; facilitating physician and patients’ access to medical records. It also ensures that only authorized persons can access medical data.
Pharmaceutical facilities are taking advantage of this technology to enhance the supply chain while ensuring a secure creation of medical records in real-time.
Incorporation of Extended Reality
The continuous shift to digitization in the drug development sector has promoted effective and efficient operations.
Drug manufacturers are taking a step further by coming up with new ways of interacting with reality in their day-to-day activities.
Extended reality is a combination of virtual and physical worlds.
It brings the virtual environment’s essence through virtual reality. It then combines it with the digital domain through augmented reality.
Extended reality technology is applicable in a range of operations in the pharma industry. But it is most helpful in design.
Designers can now use virtual models rather than physical models. This makes it easier for them to make any potential changes.
It is now possible to walk through a pharmaceutical facility before its existence through virtual visits. With this, designers can quickly spot errors. They can test the equipment without getting actual equipment for the task.
Other applications of extended reality include; site analysis, space management, and building design review.
What’s more? Extended reality eases remote operations.
Most pharma companies have different drug production plants in other parts of the world. In some cases, the plants are miles away from the headquarters where experts and specialists are located.
Some years back, such incidences called for a lot of traveling and expenses. But that does not have to be the cases with extended reality.
Experts and specialists can now support their teams with maintenance operations remotely. Also, they can access models for guidance through virtual reality.
This creates meaningful, real-time interactions among research teams without being in a shared physical location.
Precision Drug Development
Precision medicine is the next big thing in the pharmaceutical industry. The innovation aims to quantify individuals’ risks for developing any health complication. In return, experts can come up with a personalized preventative drug.
The process includes diagnosing, designing, and establishing a prognosis.
The drug developers achieve this by using large sets of data entailing individual genes and environmental differences.
Precision medicine promotes a more targeted and effective drug design to exceed users’ expectations. The manufacturers can develop personalized treatments without leaving anything to chances.
Nonetheless, there is still much progress to be made until precision medicine is fully incorporated. The innovation faces some challenges. These include harnessing the large datasets that exist to develop personalized medicine.
It is, however, possible with the integration of machine learning and artificial intelligence.
The idea is a money and time saver. Manufacturers can develop a few medications to treat every individual based on their specific risks. This is better than introducing thousands of drugs in the market.
Automation
The weekly production of tablets amounts to millions. These drugs must be scrutinized before being released to the market.
The inspection process involves ensuring that the drugs are in the right amount. Experts must also confirm that each tablet is in the right package.
These processes can be tedious and time-consuming. But thanks to automation, it takes a few minutes to have everything in order. Pharmaceutical companies are now using automated systems to manage bottle capping and labeling.
Besides packaging, automation makes it easier to produce personalized medicine. Unfortunately, most patients get similar medical treatments when diagnosed with similar health conditions. This is despite age and genetic differences,
Even the most experienced scientists cannot predict how different individuals respond to treatments. In return, this results in a one-for-all medicinal approach based on population averages.
The advent of personalized drugs brings in precision. Medications are customized to meet every patient’s needs. Precision medicine requires automation to save time and make the drugs more commercially viable.
Manual testing of every individual’s genomes can be tiresome and overwhelming. This is where automated screening comes in to ease the job while promoting accuracy.
Real-World Data
Abbreviated as RWD, real-world data is transforming pharmaceutical innovations for the better.
Real-world data includes the patients’ records and health reports.
Real-world data combined with sensors and the internet of things provide the experts with reliable information. They can use the data to restructure the pharma sector’s functioning.
Big Data in Drugs Discovery
Big data in the pharmaceutical industry has improved clinical trials and drug discovery.
The innovation is streamlining a range of complex procedures. This improves efficiency across the industry.
There is no easier way to discover hidden patterns than by using big data analytics. Pharmaceutical companies follow a data-driven approach to understand different drugs and their usage.
Manufacturers can use big data to gain valuable insights. Some useful historical and real-time sources include;
- Log files
- The Internet of Things
- Patient information
Scientists can use the collected information during clinical trials. Big data helps identify appropriate candidates for drug trials. Researchers use demographic data analysis and review of past clinical trials to determine the best candidate.
The information also helps to identify the potential side effects of drugs.
Big data makes the development of precision medicine more manageable. Experts use relevant data to diagnose disorders and develop treatments. They do so following patients’ genetic makeup and behavioral pattern. The best part is that they do not have to redo the entire research process.
Watch Out for More Technological Disruptions in the Pharmaceutical Industry
Above are a few of the technological disruptions in the pharmaceutical industry. The innovations have made drug development manageable by streamlining processes and promoting accuracy. More are expected to come.
Pharmaceutical companies should consider incorporating these technologies for increases in drug approvals and sales.
Keep reading our blog posts for more health tips and trends.
