FAQ/Help |
Calendar |
Search |
Today's Posts |
08-27-2018, 02:56 AM | #1 | ||
|
|||
Senior Member
|
A hydrogel is like a stronger version of jelly. More formally [1]:
"Hydrogels are three-dimensional, polymeric networks consisting of crosslinked hydrophilic components. In certain environmental conditions, hydrogels can imbibe large amounts of water or biological fluids, while remaining insoluble." They are excellent at soaking up a suitable drug and releasing it slowly. The only reference that I can find to hydrogels and Parkinson's is in a paper by Kondaveeti et al. [2]. Unfortunately, this is behind a paywall. But, from what I can gather, "levodopa is loaded into magnetic hydrogels". This is then released "under external magnetic field". Even without a magnetic effect, they draw a graph showing one of their gels delivering levodopa almost constantly for over a day. In my view, there would be considerable advantage in having a very slow delivery method for levodopa (that is, a long half-life), not because it might be more convenient, but because it might smooth out the peaks and troughs of plasma levodopa. This could reduce dyskinesia and/or allow PwP to take larger doses of levodopa without increasing the risk of dyskinesia. Reference: [1] "Therapeutic applications of hydrogels in oral drug delivery" Lindsey A Sharpe,1 Adam M Daily,1 Sarena D Horava,2 and Nicholas A Peppas Expert Opin Drug Deliv, 2014 Therapeutic applications of hydrogels in oral drug delivery [2] "Magnetic hydrogels for levodopa release and cell stimulation triggered by external magnetic field" Stalin Kondaveeti, Ana Teresa, Silva Semeano, Daniel R.Cornejo, Henning Ulrich, Denise Freitas Siqueira Petria Colloids and Surfaces B: Biointerfaces Volume 167, 1 July 2018, Pages 415-424 Magnetic hydrogels for levodopa release and cell stimulation triggered by external magnetic field - ScienceDirect John
__________________
Born 1955. Diagnosed PD 2005. Meds 2010-Nov 2016: Stalevo(75 mg) x 4, ropinirole xl 16 mg, rasagiline 1 mg Current meds: Stalevo(75 mg) x 5, ropinirole xl 8 mg, rasagiline 1 mg |
||
Reply With Quote |
"Thanks for this!" says: | moondaughter (08-27-2018) |
|
|
Similar Threads | ||||
Thread | Forum | |||
Long Lasting Melancholia | Depression | |||
Inhaled levodopa could provide lasting relief to patients | Parkinson's Disease | |||
Unusually long-lasting sore throat | General Health Conditions & Rare Disorders | |||
I don't think the 'roids are lasting very long... | Multiple Sclerosis |