Patent ID: 7780981

Claim:
A method for delivering a bioactive agent to a human or animal comprising: (a) providing a transdermal drug delivery device coupled to the human or animal, the transdermal drug delivery device comprising: (i) a drug reservoir comprising the bioactive agent, (ii) a membrane in contact with the skin of the human or animal; (iii) an electronic programmable timing mechanism; (iv) a mechanism for causing the bioactive agent to be delivered from the drug reservoir to the membrane in response to the timing mechanism, the bioactive agent being delivered transdermally by passive diffusion from the membrane into the skin of the human or animal; and (v) an expandable waste reservoir for controlled discontinuance of the delivery of the bioactive agent; (b) providing timing routines implemented by the timing mechanism, wherein the timing routines are selected to deliver the bioactive agent at a time, rate, sequence and/or cycle that is synchronized with a biological rhythm of the human or animal; (c) delivering the bioactive agent from the drug reservoir to the membrane in response to the timing mechanism; (d) transdermally delivering the bioactive agent from the membrane into the skin of the human or animal by passive diffusion; and (e) removing the bioactive agent and/or a carrier solution from the membrane via the expandable waste reservoir to discontinue delivery of the bioactive agent to the human or animal; wherein the device is maintained in contact with the skin during removal of the bioactive agent and/or carrier solution via the expandable waste reservoir.