DISPENSER FOR A THERAPEUTIC SUBSTANCE

Abstract: A dispenser for a therapeutic substance which is to be taken in through the respiratory tract comprises a card-shaped carrier body (10). At least one dose (1...5) of the therapeutic substance is present at a surface of this carrier. The therapeutic substance is present in a form (11) which is sealed off in an airtight manner but which can be opened by hand. The therapeutic substance can thus be carried on the person in an extremely convenient format and is available for use at all times.

Description: Dispenser for a therapeutic substance The invention relates to a dispenser for a therapeutic substance which is to be taken in through the respiratory tract, which dispenser contains at least one dose of said substance. The therapeutic substance may comprise a regular prescribed drug or a homeopathic drug here which is to be administered orally or nasally, or alternatively may comprise an active ingredient ofa kind as used in alternative therapeutic methods of treatment such as aroma therapy, where aromatic substances and aromatic oils are used for achieving the desired curative effect. Dispensers of various kinds exist especially for pharmaceutical substances for combating conditions ofthe respiratory tract and the lungs. Thus there are spray bottles in which the therapeutic substance is present in liquid form and by means of which it is sprayed into the mouth or nose so as to be absorbed therein. A disadvantage of such dispensers, however, is the inaccurate dosage ofthe active ingredient. In addition, the bottle usually contains much more ofthe therapeutic sibstance than will be used in a day or couple of days. This is a disadvantage especially for the substances mentioned above because they are usually taken along by the user in order to have the substance available at all times. A spray bottle with a capacity which is much greater than required for one or a few day(s) will have an unecessarily great weight and volume. -2- A dispenser in the form of a so-called inhaler partly eliminates these disadvantages because it is possible to introduce capsules therein which contain the therapeutic substance in an accurately measured dose in liquid or powder form. The user then need not carry more capsules daily than are required for one or several days. Nevertheless, such an inhaler still occupies comparatively much space and is in addition comparatively expensive. The present invention has for its object to provide a dispenser ofthe kind mentioned in the opening paragraph which can be inexpensively manufactured, which is small, compact, and thus easy to carry, and with which an accurate dose ofthe active ingredient can be measured out. According to the invention, a dispenser ofthe kind mentioned in the opening paragraph is for this purpose characterized in that the dispenser comprises a card-shaped carrier body at a surface of which said dose is present in a form which is sealed off in an airtight manner but which can be manually opened. Since the quantity ofthe active ingredient is always a product ofthe concentration with which and the surface area on which it has been provided, one or several doses can be accommodated on a small surface area already. The carrier body accordingly need not be larger than a small card which can be easily and unobtrusively kept, for example, in a wallet. The therapeutic substance remains sealed off hermetically as long as the dispenser is not used. The airtight seal is simply opened for intake, for example through scratching, pulling, pressing, or some other method of penetration. Only then is the active ingredient released in an exact dose as previously provided on the carrier body. It is found in practice that the dispenser according to the invention can be manufactured at very low cost, for example by a printing technique. The carrier body may thus comprise a single dose ofthe therapeutic substance, but in a preferred embodiment the dispenser according to the invention is characterized in that the carrier body supports a number of individual doses in a number of separate regions ofthe surface which are identified as such. It is possible in that case to accommodate the intake requirement for e.g. a full day, week, or other period of time on one and the same carrier body, only that dose which is required at any moment being opened each time. The empty carrier body may be simply discarded after the last dose has been used. It is possible not only to accommodate a multiple ofthe same dose on the carrier body, but also - as in a special embodiment ofthe invention - to provide the therapeutic substance in different doses on the carrier body, or to provide a number of different therapeutic substances next to one another, whether or not in multiple doses which may or may not be equal. Different doses may then be realized by means of proportionally different surface areas ofthe regions in which the doses are provided, but also, for example, in that a different concentration of the active ingredient is used on a surface area which may remain the same. The active ingredient may be provided in that the carrier body is permeated therewith, wholly or localy, or in that the substance is laminated onto the carrier body, whereupon the regions are covered by means of, for example, an airtight plastic foil. The active ingredient can be released in that the foil is pierced locally. A further special embodiment ofthe dispenser according to the invention, however, is characterized in that the therapeutic substance is enclosed in airtight microbeads which are provided in one or several regions on the surface. The active ingredient in this case lies enclosed in minute airtight globules, so-called microbeads, which are laminated onto the carrier body. The substance may be taken in in that the region with the microbeads is scratched with a nail or a hard object, so that the globules burst open and the active ingredient is released. The invention will be explained in more detail below with reference to an embodiment and the accompanying drawing in which: Fig. 1 is a plan view, and Fig. 2 is a cross-section taken on the line II-II in Fig. 1 of an embodiment ofthe dispenser according to the invention. The Figures are purely diagrammatic and not drawn true to scale. Some dimensions are particularly exaggerated for the sake of clarity. Corresponding parts have been given the same reference numerals as much as possible in the Figures. Figs. 1 and 2 show an embodiment ofthe dispenser according to the invention, in plan view and in cross-section, respectively, by means of which a therapeutic substance designed for intake through the respiratory tract can be easily administered and transported. The therapeutic substance may be, for example, a regular prescribed drug which is to be inhaled through the nose or mouth for having its effect, or may alternatively comprise an aromatic or homeopathic substance for use in aroma therapy or homeopathic treatments, in which former case, for example, selected aromatic substances and oils are used for counteracting a patient's compulsive behaviour, for example cigarette smoking, drinking of alcoholic beverages, or excessive eating. Other applications ofthe dispenser according to the invention are indeed very well conceivable. The dispenser comprises a card-shaped carrier body 10 made of paper, cardboard, a suitable synthetic resin, or any other material, preferably in the standard credit card format which is used to an ever-increasing extent nowadays, i.e. a format of 8.5 cm by 5.5 cm. Such a format has the advantage that many wallets, purses, and the like have compartments for accommodating cards of this size. The dispenser can thus be carried in the same way as the user's credit cards and as a result is always immediately at hand. Five individual doses ofthe therapeutic substance are stored in five separate regions (1...5), which are identified as such, in an airtight manner at the surface of the carrier body 10 in this example. The therapeutic substance is for this purpose accommodated in so-called microbeads 11, i.e. minute globules of synthetic resin which are provided in the correct locations and in the correct quantities on the carrier body, cf. also Fig. 2, by a printing technique which is known per se. The therapeutic substance does lie hermetically enclosed therein, but it can be released by hand in a comparatively simple manner through scratching, pulling, pressing, or some other method of exerting pressure on the relevant region, so that the beads burst open locally and the active ingredient enclosed therein is set free. To take the therapeutic substance, therefore, all the user has to do is scratch over the desired region containing the selected dose with his/her fingernail or some hard object and sniff up or otherwise inhale the therapeutic substance released in that manner. The unused doses remain hermetically sealed and accordingly available for later use. The amounts contained in the final doses (1...5) can be increased or reduced as desired in that the concentrations ofthe active ingredients in the beads are varied. It is obviously also possible to vary the total dose in a region by modifying the total surface area ofthe region accordingly. The total quantity of active ingredient in a given region will always be given by the product ofthe concentration and the specific surface area ofthe region (1...5), provided the layer thickness is the same everywhere. It is thus possible to provide equal as well as mutually different doses on the carrier body in one and the same printing process, so that in the latter case the user can choose a heavier or lighter dose ofthe same therapeutic substance in dependence on his/her need ofthe moment. It is in addition possible to provide different therapeutic substances on one carrier body in that the microbeads ofthe regions (1...5) are given different fillings. The type of therapeutic substance in a certain region may be indicated, for example, by means ofa suitable printed message on the carrier body on or below the relevant region. A printed message on the carrier body, whether on the upper or on the lower side, was found to have no influence on the operation ofthe dispenser in general and on the effectiveness ofthe therapeutic substance in particular. The carrier body also comprises a field 12 which offers a space for commercial texts or instructions relating to the therapeutic substance. Such a message may obviously also be provided on the back ofthe carrier body, in which case the space in the field 12 is available for additional doses ofthe therapeutic substance. The invention thus offers a dispenser for a therapeutic substance which is easy to carry, on which one or several sealed doses ofthe therapeutic substance are accommodated, and which can in addition accommodate printed instructions for its use. Although the invention was explained in detail above with reference to only a single embodiment, it will be obvious that the invention should by no means be regarded as limited to the example given here. On the contrary, many variations and embodiments are possible to those skilled in the art within the scope ofthe invention. Thus it is possible for the carrier body to be, for example, imbued with the therapeutic substance instead of supporting this substance provided thereon enclosed in microbeads. The carrier body should comprise a porous, or at least permeable material for this purpose. The carrier body is then sealed off afterwards with an airtight (plastic) foil in those areas where it was imbued with the active substance, or is enclosed in an airtight package. The active substance can be released in that the package is opened or the foil is removed or broken, so that it can be breathed in orally or nasally. It is also possible to use a carrier body of a larger or smaller size, so that it can accommodate more doses or occupy less storage space, respectively. Neither does the carrier body have to be rectangular, indeed, other shapes such as polygonal, circular, or oval are equally well possible.

Claims: Claims: 1. A dispenser for a therapeutic substance which is to be taken in through the respiratory tract, which dispenser contains at least one dose of said substance, characterized in that the dispenser comprises a card-shaped carrier body at a surface of which said dose is present in a form which is sealed off in an airtight manner but which can be manually opened. 2. A dispenser as claimed in Claim 1 , characterized in that the carrier body comprises a number of individual doses in a number of separate regions ofthe surface which are identified as such. 3. A dispenser as claimed in any one or several ofthe preceding Claims, characterized in that the therapeutic substance is provided in different doses in separate regions which are identified as such. 4. A dispenser as claimed in any one or several ofthe preceding Claims, characterized in that different therapeutic substances are provided at the surface in separate regions which are identified as such. 5. A dispenser as claimed in any one or several ofthe preceding Claims, characterized in that the therapeutic substance is enclosed in airtight microbeads which are provided in one or several regions on the surface. 6. A dispenser as claimed in any one or several ofthe preceding Claims, characterized in that the carrier body has a credit card format of approximately 8.5 cm by 5.5 cm. 7. A dispenser as claimed in any one or several of the preceding Claims, characterized in that the therapeutic substance was provided on the carrier body by a printing technique.

Inventors: DE GRAAF JOHANNES GERRIT, SUMAJOW CHARLES AURELIUS, DE GRAAF, JOHANNES, GERRIT, SUMAJOW, CHARLES, AURELIUS
Applicants: GRAAF JOHANNES GERRIT DE, LANGRIDGE INVESTMENTS LLC, SUMAJOW CHARLES AURELIUS, SUMAJOW HOLDING B V, DE GRAAF, JOHANNES, GERRIT, SUMAJOW HOLDING B.V., SUMAJOW, CHARLES, AURELIUS
Application year: 1997
Main classification: A61M15
IPC codes: A61M15