| abstract |
An osmotic dispensing delivery system suitable for oral administration, containing a pharmaceutically acceptable active agent for the controlled continuous release of about 50 to about 90 percent by weight of said active agent into the gastrointestinal tract at a rate of about 5 to about 12 percent by weight of said agent per hour consisting essentially of: (a) a shaped solid core containing an osmotically active composition comprising an effective amount of a pharmaceutically acceptable active agent, alone or in combination with a pharmaceutically acceptable binder, an osmotically active driving agent, or tabletting lubricant, or mixtures thereof; (b) said core being substantially evenly coated with a discrete layer of a water-soluble, or water-dispersible, and water permeable substantially non-osmotically active solid polymeric binder, said binder layer being present in an amount between about 0.3 percent and about 10 percent of the weight of the core; (c) a semi-permeable shaped wall member impermeable to said active composition and permeable to gastrointestinal fluid, surrounding and adhesively bonded to the binding layer; and (d) at least one passageway in the wall, for dispensing the active agent, in communication with said core and the external environment. |