One pill, built around the patient.
Flexipill Analgesic is a 3D printed modular polypill for pain relief. Separate units of paracetamol, ibuprofen and caffeine, each with its own release profile, are combined after printing to match each patient's needs.
Pain relief is personal. Tablets are not.
Combination pain relief often means several separate tablets, fixed doses and the same release profile for every patient. 3D printing promises personalised medicines, but the most accessible printing method has held it back.
Fixed doses
Standard tablets come in set strengths and set combinations, so the dose rarely matches the individual patient.
Heat and low drug load
Fused deposition modelling (FDM) is simple and low-cost, but its high printing temperatures and limited drug loading restrict which medicines can be printed.
Point-of-care hurdles
Printing medicines at the point of care has met regulatory resistance, slowing personalised printed medicines from reaching patients.
Source: Karkar et al., Journal of Drug Delivery Science and Technology 108, 106882 (2025). doi:10.1016/j.jddst.2025.106882
Three printed units. Three release strategies.
Each Flexipill unit carries one analgesic and is engineered for where and when that drug should act. Units are combined after printing, so one design serves many patients.
Paracetamol
- High drug loading for an FDM-printed unit
- Printed at a lower temperature
- Taste-masking properties
Ibuprofen
- Gastroprotective formulation
- Protects the drug from release in the stomach
- Targets release beyond the stomach
Caffeine
- Immediate-release formulation
- Rapid onset as an analgesic adjuvant
- Included or left out per patient
From printer to a personalised polypill.
Flexipill uses 3D printing to build each drug unit separately, so every unit can have its own formulation and release behaviour before the final pill is assembled.
- 1
Formulate
Each analgesic is formulated into its own printable material, designed for its target release profile.
Printable formulationTaste masking - 2
Print the units
Units are 3D printed individually, with the paracetamol unit printable at 100 °C.
3D printingLow-temperature printing - 3
Personalise
The prescriber or pharmacist selects which units, and how much of each, the patient needs.
Post-printing customisation - 4
Assemble
The selected units are combined into one polypill, each releasing its drug where and when intended.
GastroprotectionImmediate release
Personalised pain relief, wherever medicines are prepared.
Flexipill gives the professionals who prepare and prescribe medicines a way to match combination pain relief to the patient in front of them.
Hospital and compounding pharmacies
- Tailored analgesic combinations without extra tablets
- One printed design, many patient profiles
- Taste-masked units for better acceptance
Prescribers
- Choose the drugs and doses each patient needs
- Gastroprotected ibuprofen in the same pill
- Fewer tablets for patients to manage
Pharmaceutical partners
- A platform that customises after printing
- Modular units that can extend to other drugs
- Built on published, peer-reviewed research
Clear about the road from lab to patient.
Flexipill Analgesic is built on laboratory research. These are the steps we are designing for next.
Laboratory-proven, clinic-next
Release results come from laboratory dissolution testing. Studies in patients are the next step before clinical use.
Regulation by design
Customising after printing is designed to make personalisation practical within pharmaceutical quality and regulatory requirements.
The professional decides
The choice of drugs and doses always rests with a qualified prescriber or pharmacist.
Pharmaceutical scientists behind the polypill.
Flexipill Analgesic was founded in 2025 by the research team that designed, printed and tested the polypill.
Yasir Karkar
Co-author of the Flexipill research.
Ihsan Amer
Co-author of the Flexipill research.
Amal A. Elkordy
Co-author of the Flexipill research.
Ahmed Mostafa Faheem
Co-author of the Flexipill research.
Frequently asked questions
What is Flexipill Analgesic?
A 3D printed modular polypill for pain relief. It combines separate units of paracetamol, ibuprofen and caffeine, each formulated for its own release profile, into one pill.
How is it personalised?
The units are customised after printing. A prescriber or pharmacist chooses which units, and how much of each, a patient needs, and the selected units are combined into one polypill.
Why is the ibuprofen unit gastroprotective?
Ibuprofen can irritate the stomach. The ibuprofen unit released less than 1% of its drug in acidic gastric medium after 24 hours in laboratory testing.
How fast does the caffeine unit work?
The caffeine unit is immediate release: 84% of the caffeine was released within the first 30 minutes in laboratory testing.
Is Flexipill available for patients?
Not yet. The results come from laboratory research. Clinical studies and regulatory approval are needed before Flexipill can be used in patients.
Peer-reviewed science behind every unit.
Read the full study behind Flexipill Analgesic's design, printing and release testing.
Karkar, Y., Amer, I., Elkordy, A. A., & Faheem, A. (2025). Flexipill: A novel 3D printed personalised analgesic polypill with diverse targeted drug release approaches. Journal of Drug Delivery Science and Technology, 108, 106882.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jddst.2025.106882