Patent ID: 7431959

Claim:
A method of manufacturing a drug eluting implantable medical device, comprising: applying a composition to an implantable medical device, the composition comprising a polymer, an active agent and a solvent; allowing the solvent to evaporate to form a dry coating, the dry coating comprising less than 10% residual fluid content (w/w); and directing a beam of charged particles to the dry polymeric coating to modify the release rate of the active agent from the coating, wherein the beam of charged particles has a current density from 0.001 μA/cm 2 to 1 μA/cm 2 , and wherein the directing a beam of charged particles to the dry polymeric coating causes the coating to have an increased release rate of the active agent from the coating, with the provision that the directing the beam of charged particles is not gamma radiation, electron beam, or plasma treatment.