From there, the drug finds its way into the blood system, where it can perform its function. The only way a patient can tell that something has happened is that they hear a soft clap when the device is fired, and a red mark is left temporarily on their skin. Burkoth and colleagues found the device to be effective when tested on eight healthy female volunteers, ages 18-40, using a drug called calcitonin, which is used to lower calcium levels. The device, Burkoth says, could potentially be used to administer vaccines with minimal discomfort. N.Y. But another device, the electronic inhaler, may be ready for prime time, Saltzman says.
Conventional inhalers deliver varied amounts of medication to the large airways of the lungs.
According to Igor Gonda, PhD, a researcher at Aradigm Corp. in Hayward, Calif., the device monitors how a patient is inhaling, and when the breaths are slow and controlled, it emits a green light to signal that the drug is about to be administered. A piston pushes the drug from its blister pack into the airstream, where it is inhaled. The patient holds his breath for a few seconds to allow the drug to concentrate in the lungs. Gorda says that the device could be used in treating diabetes, cystic fibrosis, or chronic pain, and may even play a role in delivering gene therapy. He adds that use in asthma and other lung disorders is also possible.