Biosynchronous transdermal drug delivery

Abstract

Systems and methods for synchronizing the administration of compounds with the human body's natural circadian rhythms and addiction rhythms to counteract symptoms when they are likely to be at their worst by using an automated and pre programmable transdermal or other drug administration system.

Description

[0001] This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60 / 609,418 filed on September 13, 2004 which is incorporated herein by reference. This application also relates to PCT application No. PCT / IB2004 / 002947 entitled Transdermal Drug Delivery Method and System filed on Sep. 13, 2004 which is incorporated herein by reference.FIELD OF THE INVENTION [0002] The present invention relates, in general, to controlled drug delivery methods and systems, and, more specifically, to systems and methods for biosynchronous transdermal drug delivery in which drugs, pharmaceuticals, and other bioactive substances are delivered transdermally into a body in a manner that is synchronized with biological processes and / or biological rhythms so as to improve performance of the substance in the body. RELEVANT BACKGROUND [0003] In the field of drug delivery, it is recognized that supplying the drug in a correct temporal pattern is an important attribute of any drug delivery methodolo...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0014] Specifically, this invention describes a method to maximize the efficiency of compound administration, decrease negative side effects and increase the efficacy of pharmacological therapy by synchronizing and tailoring the administration of certain compounds to match these circadian rhythms.

[0017] More specifically, these methods synchronize and tailor drug administration to the human body's circadian rhythms to deliver varying dosages at varying times. This ensures that peak drug concentrations are present in the bloodstream to offset peak disease and addiction symptoms arising from variances and fluctuation in the body's natural circadian rhythms. Further, these methods ensure that less of a drug is in the bloodstream when disease and addiction symptoms are at there lowest. This minimizes negative side effects, and increases efficacy of the dosing regimen.

Problems solved by technology

However, the administration is undesirably invasive as they involve administration via a puncture needle or catheter.

Unfortunately, it is often difficult to control the degradation of the coating or encapsulant after administration and the actual performance will vary from patient to patient.

Like delayed release systems, sustained release systems are difficult to control and exhibit variability from patient to patient.

Due to the adsorption through the gastrointestinal tract, drug concentrations rise quickly in the body when taking a pill, but the decrease is dependent on excretion and metabolism, which can not be controlled.

In addition, the adsorption through the gastrointestinal tract in many cases leads to considerable side effects (such as ulcers), and can severely damage the liver.

In some cases, drugs cannot be effectively administered orally because the active ingredients are destroyed or altered by the gastrointestinal system.

In other cases the drug may be physically or chemically incompatible with the coatings and / or chelating agents used to implement sustained release.

However, a variety of physical and chemical processes at the skin / patch boundary affect the delivery rate and may eventually inhibit drug delivery altogether.

Conventional transdermal systems circumvent the disadvantages of the adsorption through the gastrointestinal tract, but they do not optimize or tailor the dosing regiment to offset peak symptoms.

In addition the constant transdermal delivery of a drug can lead to severe side effects, including debilitating sleep disorders and ever increasing tolerance.

However, this system does not overcome the limitations of delayed release systems described above.

Although it is possible to meet the requirements of chronopharmacology with pills, this requires an enormous amount of discipline by the patient to comply with the treatment regiment.

Currently, patient compliance (taking the proper dosages at the prescribed times) is a critical problem facing caregivers and pharmaceutical firms alike.

It is estimated that non-compliance results in additional healthcare costs in excess of $100 billion per year in United States.

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