Patent ID: 7497855

Claim:
A method for controlled delivery of parathyroid hormone to a patient in need thereof comprising: implanting a medical device into the patient, the medical device comprising: a substrate having a plurality of reservoirs, a release system contained in each of the reservoirs, wherein the release system comprises parathyroid hormone, and a plurality of discrete reservoir caps, each being in register with an opening of one of the reservoirs, separating the release system from an environment outside of the reservoirs, and preventing the parathyroid hormone from being released from the medical device; passing an electric current through one or more of the discrete reservoir caps, via an electrical input lead and an electrical output lead which are electrically connected to said reservoir cap, to disintegrate the one or more discrete reservoir caps by electrothermal ablation, thereby to expose to the environment the release system contained in the one or more reservoirs corresponding to the disintegratd one or more reservoir caps; and releasing a pharmaceutically effective amount of the parathyroid hormone from the one or more reservoirs corresponding to the disintegrated one or more reservoir caps.