초록 ▼

The iontophoresis device for transcutaneous administration of the active principle to the subject comprises electrodes, at least one of which is a consumable electrode formed of an electrochemically consumable material associated either with an insulating support or with a particular electronically

The iontophoresis device for transcutaneous administration of the active principle to the subject comprises electrodes, at least one of which is a consumable electrode formed of an electrochemically consumable material associated either with an insulating support or with a particular electronically conducting support. The single consumable electrode or one of the consumable electrodes holds a limited quantity of electrochemically consumable material, the said limited quantity being chosen so that the quantity of electricity necessary for its electrochemical consumption corresponds to the quantity of electricity necessary for administering the given total quantity of active principle to the subject and the active principle is present at the start of the operation in a quantity greater than the said given total quantity.

대표청구항 ▼

1. Iontophoresis device for transcutaneous administration of a given total quantity of an active principle to a subject comprising: a first electrode assembly including a first electrode called the active electrode, in contact with a reservoir element for holding an electrolyte containing the act

1. Iontophoresis device for transcutaneous administration of a given total quantity of an active principle to a subject comprising: a first electrode assembly including a first electrode called the active electrode, in contact with a reservoir element for holding an electrolyte containing the active principle and for contacting an area of the skin of the subject to achieve ionic conducting continuity between the active electrode and the said area, a second electrode assembly including a second electrode called the back electrode of opposite polarity to that associated with the active principle, in contact with a receptor element for contacting a portion of the skin of the subject to achieve ionic conducting continuity between the second electrode and the said portion, and an electric signal generator connected to the two electrodes, wherein one of said first electrode assembly and said second electrode assembly further comprises a limiting consumable electrode formed of a limited quantity of electrochemically consumable material, said limited quantity being chosen such that the quantity of electricity necessary for its electrochemical consumption corresponds of the quantity of electricity necessary for administering the given total quantity of active principle to the subject said limiting consumable electrode being disposed in one of said first and second electrode assemblies such that the flow of current between the two electrodes is broken when the electrochemically consumable material has been consumed. 2. Device according to claim 1, wherein the quantity of active principle present in the reservoir element at the start of the operation is in excess by approximately 2% to 1000% with respect to the given total quantity of active principle to be administered. 3. Device according to claim 1 wherein the active electrode is the limiting consumable electrode, while the back electrode is an electrode which is not electrochemically consumable. 4. Device according to claim 3, wherein the limiting consumable electrode is used as the anode, the electrochemically consumable material of the said electrode being chosen from materials which are consumable by electrochemical oxidation. 5. Device according to claim 4, wherein the limiting consumable electrode is used as the anode and is comprised of at least one metal selected from the group consisting of Al, Ag, Cu, Mg and Zn deposited on an insulating support or on an electronically conducting support selected from the group consisting of titanium, stainless steel, platinum, carbon, graphite and a conducting polymer. 6. Device according to claim 3, wherein the limiting consumable electrode is used as the cathode, the electrochemically consumable material of the said electrode being selected from ionisable metal compounds whose metal ions are capable of being reduced electrochemically into the corresponding metal. 7. Device according to claim 6, wherein the limiting consumable electrode is used as the cathode, said electrode being based on AgCl or CuCl deposited on a copper, silver, stainless steel, titanium, carbon, polypropylene, polyethylene or conducting polymer support. 8. The device according to claim 3, wherein the limiting consumable electrode is used as the anode, the electrochemically consumable material of said electrode being comprised of at least one metal elected from the group consisting of Al, Cu, Mg, Zn and Ag. 9. The device according to claim 3, wherein the limiting consumable electrode is used as the cathode, the electrochemically consumable material of said electrode being at least one of AgCl and CuCl. 10. Device according to claim 1 wherein the active electrode is an electrode which is not electrochemically consumable, while the back electrode is the limiting consumable electrode. 11. Device according to claim 1 wherein the active electrode and the back electrode are both electrochemically consumable electrodes, one of the electrodes being the limiting consumable electrode, while the other electrode is a non-limiting consumable electrode, that is to say holding an electrochemically consumable material in a quantity in excess with respect to the quantity which would be consumed by the passage of the quantity of electricity consuming the quantity of electrochemically consumable material of the limiting consumable electrode. 12. The device according to claim 11, wherein the non-limiting consumable electrode is used as the anode, the electrochemically consumable material of said electrode being chosen from materials which are consumable by electrochemical oxidation. 13. The device according to claim 11, herein the non-limiting consumable electrode is used as the anode, the electrochemically consumable material of said electrode being comprised of at least one metal selected from the group consisting of Al, Cu, Mg, Zn and Ag. 14. The device according to claim 11, wherein the non-limiting consumable electrode is used as the cathode, the electrochemically consumable material of said electrode being chosen from ionisable metal compounds whose metal ions are capable of being reduced electrochemically into the corresponding metal. 15. The device according to claim 11, wherein the non-limiting consumable electrode is used as the cathode, the electrochemically consumable material of said electrode being at least one of AgCl and CuCl. 16. The device according to claim 11, wherein the non-limiting consumable electrode is used as the cathode, said electrode being comprised of AgCl or CuCl deposited on a copper, silver, stainless steel, titanium, carbon, polypropylene, polyethylene or conductive polymer support. 17. The device according to claim 1, wherein the active principle contained in the electrolyte is in at least partially ionised form and said active electrode has the same polarity as the ions of the active principle. 18. The device according to claim 1, wherein the active principle contained in the electrolyte is in neutral form and said active electrode has a positive polarity. 19. The device according to claim 1, wherein said receptor element holds an indifferent electrolyte. 20. The device according to claim 1, wherein said consumable electrode consists of an electrochemically consumable material associated with an insulating support. 21. The device according to claim 20, wherein said electronically conducting support is made of material having a hydrogen overpotential in the presence of said electrolyte at least equal to that of aluminum. 22. The device according to claim 20, wherein said electronically conducting support is made of material which is not consumable by electrochemical oxidation. 23. The device according to claim 1, wherein said consumable electrode consists of an electrochemically consumable material associated with an electronically conducting support made of a material which resists corrosion by the electrolyte associated with the electrode in the absence of a current. 24. The device according to claim 1, wherein the active principle is present in the reservoir element at the start of operation in a quantity greater than the total quantity to be administered to the subject. 25. The device according to claim 1, wherein the quantity of active principle present in the reservoir element at the start of the operation is in excess by about 2% to 500% with respect to the given total quantity of active principle to be administered. 26. Iontophoresis device for transcutaneous administration of a given total quantity of an active principle to a subject, which comprises: a) a first electrode assembly consisting of a first electrode, called the active electrode, in contact with a reservoir element for holding an electrolyte containing the active principle in an at least partially ionised form or in a neutral form and for providing, when it is placed in contact with an area of the skin of the subject, ionic conducting continuity between said first electrode and said area, said first electrode having the same polarity as the ions of the active principle or a positive polarity if the active principle is neutral and the active principle being present, at the start of the operation, in the reservoir element holding it in a quantity greater than the given total quantity to be administered to the subject, b) a second electrode assembly selected from the group consisting of i) a second electrode, called the back electrode, of opposite polarity to that associated with the active principle and ii) a second electrode of said type i) in contact with a receptor element holding an indifferent electrolyte, said receptor element being arranged to provide, when it is placed in contact with a portion of the skin of the subject, ionic conducting continuity between the second electrode and said portion, and c) an electric signal generator for connecting to the active and back electrodes and for applying between said electrodes an intensiometric signal comprising a signal of set average intensity or a potentiometric signal comprising a signal of set average voltage, the said signal being continuous or pulsed and permanent or intermittent, with or without temporary polarity inversion and having a frequency ranging from 0 to 500 kHz; and wherein at least one of the first electrode in contact with the reservoir element and the second electrode in contact with the receptor elements further comprising a consumable electrode formed of an electrochemically consumable material associated with an insulating support or with an electronically conducting support, said electronically conducting support being made of a material which resists corrosion by the electrolyte associated with the electrode in the absence of a current and which has, when the consumable electrode is a negative electrode, a hydrogen overpotential in the presence of said electrolyte at least equal to that of aluminum or which is not consumable by electrochemical oxidation when the consumable electrode is a positive electrode, and the consumable electrode or one of the consumable electrodes holds a limited quantity of the electrochemically consumable material associated with the support said limited quantity being chosen so that the quantity of electricity necessary for its electrochemical consumption corresponds to the quantity of electricity necessary for administering the given total quantity of active principle to the subject, so that the flow of the current between the electrodes is practically broken when the consumable material of the electrode carrying the limited quantity of consumable material has been consumed. 27. The device according to claim 26, wherein the electric signal is a pulsed signal having a ratio between the duration of the elementary pulse, whose repetition forms the pulsed signal, and the time interval separating two successive appearances of this pulse, called a duty ratio, ranging from 0.05 to 0.95. 28. The device according to claim 27, wherein said duty ratio ranges from 0.1 to 0.8. 29. The device according to claim 26, wherein the electric signal applied between the active electrode and the back electrode is of the potentiometric type and has an average voltage between 0.1 and 50 volts so that the density of the average current generated between said electrodes has a value less than 5 mA/cm 2 . 30. The device according to claim 26, wherein said frequency ranges from 0 to 100 kHz. 31. The device according to claim 26, wherein the electric signal applied between the active electrode and the back electrode is of the potentiometric type and has an average voltage between 0.5 and 20 volts so that the density of the average current generated between said electrodes has a value less than 5 mA/cm 2 . 32. The device according to claim 31, wherein the density of the average current generated between the active and back electrodes has a value at most equal to 1 mA/cm 2 . 33. The device according to claim 32, wherein the density of the average current generated between the active and back electrodes has a value between 0.03 and 0.5 mA/cm 2 .