Footsteps of Pulsatile Drug Delivery System in Pharmaceutical Sciences

Pulsatile Drug Delivery System is provided a novel drug delivery system which provides for intermittent drug delivery with readily adjustable intervals between drug delivery pulses. It is accomplished by providing a multilayer device in which layers of active drug are readily expandable or erodable when contacted with the environment in which the drug is to be administered. The drug layer is alternated with an inert layer and a multiplicity of such layers are contained within a tube impervious to such environment but provided with an opening into such environment. The multiplicity of such layers is driven along the length of such tube towards the opening. The interval between pulses is determined by the rate the layers are driven along the tube and the sizes of the layers. The duration of the pulse is determined by the rate of expansion or dispersion of the active layer into the environment.