Pharmacotherapy
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Review Comparative Study
Iontophoretic drug delivery system: focus on fentanyl.
Fentanyl iontophoretic transdermal system (ITS) is a novel, patient-activated drug delivery device used for the management of acute postoperative pain in the hospital setting. This credit-card-sized device uses an imperceptible current of 170 milliampere to actively deliver a fentanyl hydrochloride 40-microg dose into the vasculature over a 10-minute interval. The unit is programmed to lock out further doses after either 80 doses or 24 hours, whichever is reached first. ⋯ Although adverse effects were congruent with those expected from pure-agonist opioids, subjects assigned to the ITS group did experience a higher rate of mild, clinically nonsignificant erythema at the system placement site. Judicious monitoring for opioid-induced respiratory depression is recommended for fentanyl ITS, although this adverse effect has not been observed in clinical trials. Fentanyl ITS may provide another useful alternative in the management of acute postoperative pain.