IONTOPHORESIS SYSTEM AND ITS CONTROL PROCESS OF CURRENT

An iontophoresis system and its control process for current are proposed, which system can decrease variation in drug delivery quantity due to the individual difference of impedance of skin or mucosal membrane, and avoid any decrease of the delivery quantity of drug in a donor device, thereby to obtain excellent medicinal effect, safety, reliability, and productivity, comprising said donor device, a reference device, a current detection unit for measuring as an effective current value the difference between the value of an applied current passing between the donor and reference devices during application of pulse voltage/current and the value of a discharged current whose electric charge which the living body has been equipped with is released by a short-circuit formed between said donor and reference devices when the application of pulse voltage/current is suspended, and a feedback control unit of making the amplitude of the pulse voltage/current variable to control the effective current value. The control process for current of the iontophoresis system of the present invention comprises an effective current measurement step of measuring said effective current value and a feedback control step of controlling said effective current value. An iontophoresis device which is capable of reducing variations in drug delivery caused by the individual difference in the impedances of the skin or mucous membrane and inhibiting a decrease in drug delivery at a different electrode and is excellent in pharmacological effects, safety, reliability, and mass-producibility. The device comprises a different electrode, an indifferent electrode, a current detection section for determining an active current value as a difference between the value of an applied current flowing between the different and indifferent electrodes when pulse voltage/current are applied and the value of a discharge current flowing when the electric charge accumulated in the living organism is discharged as a result of shortcircuiting in the different and indifferent electrodes occurring when the application of pulse voltage/current is suspended, and a feedback control section for controlling the active current value by making pulse voltage/current amplitudes variable. The method of current control for the device comprises the step of determining the active current value and the feedback control step for controlling the active current value.