Alsa Refinish, a California-based company, has process and utility patent applications in place for a medication delivery method.
If successful, Alsa will hold patents for a device that delivers medications and herbal preparations directly into the lungs through vaporization, or ‘vaping’. It incorporates technology used in vaporizing pens and e-cigarettes, and in addition, adds Alsa’s proprietary stationary mouth tube design.
Alsa’s innovative vaporization technology advances have created devices that can precisely measure and deliver medication.
Alsa Refinish president Ike Banoun noted vaping the drug would deliver it directly to the smallest areas of the lungs via harmless vapor.
"Our patents cover vaporizing a wide array of drugs and herbal therapies. The hypodermic needle is 400 years old. It’s time it came into the non-invasive electronic world. I bet it will be in the museums of the future," Banoun added.
Alsa’s device could vaporize many pharmaceutical drugs, NSAIDs, herbal supplements and vitamins. Good pharmaceutical candidates for vaporization include, but are not restricted to, nitroglycerin, sildenafil (Viagra), antibiotics and active ingredients of cough syrups.
Patients that have asthma or cystic fibrosis could replace their inhalers with vaping devices to disinfect and treat the mucus with mucolytics in their lungs. Additionally, diabetic patients could also be delivered insulin via non-parenteral routes instead of taking painful injections.
The drug classes listed on Alsa’s patent applications include antipyretic medications for fever reduction; NSAIDs to relieve pain, swelling and inflammation; and both opioid and non-opioid analgesics for pain relief.
Heat-stable medications from any of these classes could potentially be administered through vaporization. Readily available treatments like Vicks Vaporub (active ingredients) could be delivered directly into the lungs instead of being smeared on the chest. Also, patients could use vaping devices to inhale therapeutic herbs in liquid form.
In addition to delivering medication through the mouth, vaporization can be used to administer medication nasally. This method of delivering medication doesn’t pass through the stomach and liver, so it prevents loss of potency.
In this way, vaping devices have the potential to treat diseases more easily and quickly, and to deliver analgesics for more effective pain management. Medications can also be flavored for making them palatable and for ease in administering to children.
Alsa envisions its vaping device as an effective and low-cost vaccine delivery solution for not-for-profit groups and healthcare providers. They could vaccinate the entire village with a single vaporization device, and inexpensive disposable tips to eliminate cross-contamination.
In fact, Alsa hopes to partner with the Gates Foundation to increase worldwide vaccine acceptance, availability and delivery.
Vaporization pens and e-cigarettes have widespread consumer appeal. These patents could present profitable financial opportunities for both investors and strategic partners. Interested parties can contact Alsa Refinish to discuss possible joint ventures and investments.