A Review on Pulsatile Drug Delivery System: Drug Scheduling based on Biological Rhythm

Abstract

Advancement in chronopharmacology and the necessity of an appropriate technology for time specific and site specific drug delivery has led to the development of novel type of drug delivery systems as “chronotropic or Pulsatile drug delivery systems”. Rationale for designing pulsatile delivery systems is to release the drug at desired time, which results in improved therapeutic efficacy and patient-outcome. These systems are meant for treatment of those diseases that are caused due to circadian changes in body like asthma, peptic ulcer, cardiovascular diseases, arthritis and when zero order drug release is not desired. These pulsatile delivery systems a releases the drug within a short period of time, immediately after a predetermined lag time. The present article focuses on diseases requiring chronotropic systems and their chronological behaviour, various approaches, recent technologies for chronotherapy and currently available marketed formulations.