Inspiratory flow patterns with dry powder inhalers of low and medium flow resistance in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension.

Inhalation profiles to support use of dry powder inhalers for drug delivery in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension have not been reported. We aimed to evaluate the inspiratory flow pattern associated with low and medium flow resistance dry powder inhaler devices (RS01-L and RS01-M, respectively) in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension. This single-center study enrolled patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension associated with connective tissue disease (n = 10) and idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension (n = 10) to measure the following inhalation parameters: inspiratory effort (kPa), peak inspiratory flow rate (L/min), inhaled volume (L), and flow increase rate (L/s2) using the two devices. We identified a trend toward higher mean pulmonary artery pressure in the idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension group (50 ± 13 mmHg vs. 40 ± 11 mmHg in pulmonary arterial hypertension associated with connective tissue disease; p = 0.077). On average, peak inspiratory flow rate was higher with RS01-L vs. RS01-M (84 ± 19.7 L/min vs. 70.4 ± 13.2 L/min; p = 0.015). In the overall group, no differences between RS01-L and RS01-M were observed for inhaled volume, inspiratory effort, or flow increase rate. Inhaled volume with RS01-L was higher in pulmonary arterial hypertension associated with connective tissue disease vs. idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension patients: 1.6 ± 0.4 L vs. 1.3 ± 0.2 L; p = 0.042. For the RS01-L, inhaled volume correlated with forced expiratory volume in one second (r = 0.460, p = 0.030) and forced vital capacity (r = 0.507, p = 0.015). In patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension associated with connective tissue disease using RS01-L, both inspiratory effort and flow increase rate were highly correlated with pulmonary vascular compliance (r = 0.903, p = 0.0001 and r = 0.906, p = 0.0001; respectively); while with RS01-M, inspiratory effort was highly correlated with pulmonary vascular compliance (r = 0.8, p = 0.001). Our data suggest that the use of RS01-L and RS01-M dry powder inhaler devices allowed adequate inspiratory flow in pulmonary arterial hypertension patients. The correlation between flow increase rate and pulmonary vascular compliance in pulmonary arterial hypertension associated with connective tissue disease deserves further investigation.

Design of spray dried insulin microparticles to bypass deposition in the extrathoracic region and maximize total lung dose.

Inhaled drugs all too often deliver only a fraction of the emitted dose to the target lung site due to deposition in the extrathoracic region (i.e., mouth and throat), which can lead to increased variation in lung exposure, and in some instances increases in local and systemic side effects. For aerosol medications, improved targeting to the lungs may be achieved by tailoring the micromeritic properties of the particles (e.g., size, density, rugosity) to minimize deposition in the mouth-throat and maximize the total lung dose. This study evaluated a co-solvent spray drying approach to modulate particle morphology and dose delivery characteristics of engineered powder formulations of insulin microparticles. The binary co-solvent system studied included water as the primary solvent mixed with an organic co-solvent, e.g., ethanol. Factors such as the relative rate of evaporation of each component of a binary co-solvent mixture, and insulin solubility in each component were considered in selecting feedstock compositions. A water-ethanol co-solvent mixture with a composition range considered suitable for modulating particle shell formation during drying was selected for experimental investigation. An Alberta Idealized Throat model was used to evaluate the in vitro total lung dose of a series of spray dried insulin formulations engineered with different bulk powder properties and delivered with two prototype inhalers that fluidize and disperse powder using different principles. The in vitro total lung dose of insulin microparticles was improved and favored for powders with low bulk density and small primary particle size, with reduction of deposition in the extrathoracic region. The results demonstrated that a total lung dose >95% of the delivered dose can be achieved with engineered particles, indicating a high degree of lung targeting, almost completely bypassing deposition in the mouth-throat.

Effects of ramp-up of inspired airflow on in vitro aerosol dose delivery performance for certain dry powder inhalers.

This study investigated the effect of airflow ramp-up on the dose delivery performance of seven dry powder inhalers, covering a broad range of powder formulations and powder dispersion mechanisms. In vitro performance tests were performed at a target pressure drop of 4kPa, using two inspiratory flow ramp-up conditions, representing slow and fast ramp-up of airflow, respectively. The fluidization of bulk powder and aerosol clearance from the inhaler was assessed by laser photometer evaluation of aerosol emission kinetics and measurement of the delivered dose (DD). The quality of aerosol dispersion (i.e. de-agglomeration) and associated lung targeting performance was assessed by measuring the total lung dose (TLD) using the Alberta idealized mouth-throat model. The ratio of DD and TLD under slow/fast ramp conditions was used as a metric to rank-order flow ramp effects. Test results show that the delivered dose is relatively unaffected by flow ramp (DD ratio ~1 for all dry powder inhalers). In contrast, the total lung dose showed significantly more variation as a function of flow ramp and inhaler type. Engineered (spray dried) powder formulations were associated with relatively high TLD (>50% of nominal dose) compared to lactose blend and agglomerate based formulations, which had a lower TLD (7-40% of nominal dose), indicative of less efficient targeting of the lung. The TLD for the Tobi Podhaler was the least influenced by flow ramp (TLD ratio ~1), while the TLD for the Asmanex Twisthaler was the most sensitive to flow ramp (TLD ratio ≪1). The relatively high sensitivity of the Asmanex Twisthaler to flow ramp is attributed to rapid aerosol clearance (from the inhaler) combined with a strong effect of flow-rate on particle de-agglomeration and resulting size distribution.