Controlled-Release Sleep Formulation for Insomnia
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current pharmacological therapeutics for insomnia primarily focus on helping patients fall asleep but often fail to maintain sleep throughout the night, leading to incomplete sleep cycles and associated side effects like addiction and next-morning impairment.
Innovation Solution
A controlled-release formulation that administers one or more sleep-affecting compounds in specific doses and at specific times, utilizing multiple stages of release to extend sleep duration while minimizing side effects, employing a combination of polymeric compositions and coatings for precise drug delivery.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Speed
If conventional sleeping pills are used to help patients fall asleep, then the ability to fall asleep is improved, but the ability to remain asleep for sufficient time deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the sleep medication into multiple dosage stages released at different times during the night. The formulation includes an immediate-release component for rapid sleep onset and a controlled-release component for sustained sleep maintenance, thereby resolving the contradiction between fast sleep induction and prolonged sleep duration.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs periodic drug release patterns with distinct phases: an initial burst release for rapid sleep onset, followed by sustained release phases at predetermined intervals to maintain sleep throughout the night. This periodic action pattern addresses both the need for quick sleep induction and continuous sleep maintenance.
2Duration of action of moving object
If higher doses of sleeping pills are used to extend sleep duration, then the duration of sleep is improved, but the risk of addiction and side effects worsens
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the total drug dose into multiple smaller administrations throughout the night via controlled-release mechanisms. This segmentation allows extended sleep duration while avoiding the need for high single doses, thereby reducing addiction risk and side effects such as next-morning impairment.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent provides continuous low-dose drug delivery throughout the sleep period rather than a single high dose. This continuous action maintains therapeutic effect for extended duration while keeping individual dose levels low enough to minimize harmful effects and addiction potential.
3Duration of action of moving object
If multiple drugs are administered to maintain sleep throughout the night, then the duration of sleep is improved, but the complexity of the treatment regimen worsens
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple drugs with different release profiles into a single unified formulation. This single combined product delivers multiple medications at appropriate times and doses, simplifying the treatment regimen while achieving extended sleep maintenance that would otherwise require multiple separate administrations.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a multi-functional formulation that performs multiple functions: rapid sleep induction, sustained sleep maintenance, and minimization of side effects. This universal formulation replaces what would traditionally require multiple separate medications and administrations, reducing regimen complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
Described is a controlled-release formulation for treating disturbed sleep or insomnia in a subject. The formulation is formulated to release a compound or combination of compounds in sequence at multiple stages.