Warfarin Nanoparticle and Microparticle Technologies: Therapeutic and Analytical Perspectives

Warfarin is an oral anticoagulant widely used for the prevention and treatment of thromboembolic disorders. However, its clinical use is limited by a narrow therapeutic index, high variability in plasma levels, and the need for strict therapeutic monitoring. To address these limitations, various drug delivery systems have been developed to improve warfarin bioavailability, stabilize plasma drug concentrations, and enhance patient compliance. This review evaluates 11 representative studies covering diverse nano- and microtechnology-based approaches developed to address these challenges from both therapeutic and analytical perspectives. Therapeutic strategies include polymeric micro- and nanoparticles, self-assembled systems, silica-based carriers, and nanoprecipitation techniques, which have been shown to improve warfarin solubility, encapsulation efficiency, release control, and biodistribution, primarily in in vitro and animal models. In addition, analytical advances such as nanomaterial-based electrochemical sensors and mesoporous silica adsorbents have demonstrated enhanced sensitivity and faster detection of warfarin, with several platforms achieving limits of detection within clinically relevant ranges and validation in serum or blood matrices. Despite these promising developments, most reported outcomes remain descriptive and preclinical, with limited evaluation of long-term safety and clinically relevant haemostasis endpoints. Future efforts should focus on scalable manufacturing, comprehensive in vivo assessment of haemostasis parameters, and validation of analytical platforms using patient samples in comparison with gold-standard analytical methods. These steps are essential to enable the safe and effective clinical translation of nano- and microtechnologies for warfarin.