The recent advances in nanotechnology and its application in medicine have merged into a new concept called nanomedicine. Colloidal drug delivery systems and specifically polymeric nanoparticles are one of the most promising novel drug carriers due to their capacity for passive or active targeting for therapeutic and diagnostic applications. The introduction of novel therapeutic nanoscaled agents requires simple, efficient and feasible industrial-scale production methods. Biodegradable polymeric nanoparticles are usually prepared from preformed polymers by five techniques: emulsification- solvent evaporation, solvent displacement, salting-out, emulsification-solvent diffusion and double emulsion solvent evaporation. This review discusses the use of the salting-out technique for the preparation of nanoparticles in the development of systems for drug delivery and other pharmaceutical applications. The relevant applications, formulations and release characteristics of novel colloidal drug delivery preparations from research literature and patents are summarized. This review is intended as a tool for the rational development of polymeric colloidal systems for pharmaceutical use.