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Promoting Long-Term Iontophoresis through Safety Electronics

Webster, Alva
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1523628670322302

Abstract Details

2018, MS, University of Cincinnati, Engineering and Applied Science: Electrical Engineering.
Iontophoresis is a common process where electric current is employed to deliver charge-based drugs through the skin. Iontophoresis has been used through devices such as the Iontopatch to deliver drugs in a targeted area over an extended period. [1] The convenience of these devices can be used for many applications such as pain management, sweat stimulation, and anti-inflammatory drug delivery. Though these drugs delivering products are useful, no product on the market considers safety through their delivery process. Drug dosage is a very important aspect of safety that none of the devices on the market consider. Overdosing is bound to occur in any patch that is not monitoring the amount of charged drug that has been carried through the skin. In addition, applying electric currents to the skin will disrupt the stratum corneum resulting in an increase of permeability, and cause irreversible thermal damage. [2] Both issues in iontophoresis drug delivery can be avoided with electronics to monitor both current applied to the skin and the skin’s behavior through the delivery process. As a senior design project at the University of Cincinnati, the electronics were initially created to help monitor the process of iontophoresis for its use in sweat stimulant drug delivery. This product was initially conceived through close collaboration with the Novel Devices Laboratory. Further research with the concept has bloomed results showing that with redesigned electronics both long-term and safe iontophoresis can be implemented into a wearable prototype. The device works by monitoring the skin’s resistance during the iontophoresis delivery method. By applying a known voltage to the skin and measuring the resistance during application, current is detected through Ohm’s Law. This allows for the use of a microcontroller to monitor the current that is being used. With this current, a dosage of stimulant can be measured. By measuring the skin’s resistance throughout the process, damaging effects can be detected. If the skin’s resistance dramatically drops, thermal damage is bound to occur. The use of a microcontroller can control the current through the skin. As thermal damage is occurring, the MCU will reduce the current applied to the skin and allow time for the stratum corneum to repair. The device has been implemented into a small circuit that is controlled by a PIC microcontroller. Visual representation shows that the device can trigger iontophoresis delivery of a drug through pigskin. In addition, through collected data of a controlled environment the thermal damage event detection method is shown. The results of these tests show that a safe, controllable iontophoresis device can be employed for long-term stimulation applications. These improvements on the existing platforms will allow for innovations in the long-term, wearable drug delivery market.
Jason Heikenfeld, Ph.D. (Committee Chair)
Leyla Esfandiari, Ph.D. (Committee Member)
Richard Hunter, Ph.D. (Committee Member)
57 p.
Electrical Engineering
Long-Term Iontophoresis; Safety Electronics; Webster

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Webster, A. (2018). Promoting Long-Term Iontophoresis through Safety Electronics [Master's thesis, University of Cincinnati]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1523628670322302

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Webster, Alva. Promoting Long-Term Iontophoresis through Safety Electronics. 2018. University of Cincinnati, Master's thesis. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1523628670322302.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Webster, Alva. "Promoting Long-Term Iontophoresis through Safety Electronics." Master's thesis, University of Cincinnati, 2018. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1523628670322302

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

ucin1523628670322302
592
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This open access ETD is published by University of Cincinnati and OhioLINK.