Pharmaxis: The Orbital® inhaler, developed by PA, is…

While medical advances in the last 30 years mean that more than half of all people with cystic fibrosis (CF) can now expect to live beyond the age of 41, a cure remains elusive.

One of the step-changes in CF treatment has been the introduction of inhaled mannitol (Bronchitol) which improves lung function. Delivered via a dry-powder inhaler, patients need to inhale ten separate 40mg capsules twice a day to achieve the therapeutic dose. While the benefits are great, this regime increases the already very lengthy amount of time that CF sufferers have to dedicate to taking their daily medication.

To make life easier for patients, Pharmaxis, the company that developed mannitol, commissioned PA to design and develop an inhaler that could deliver a full 400mg dose of mannitol with fewer inhalations and user actions.

Our team of experts created an inhaler that has been independently demonstrated to deliver mannitol and other drugs more efficiently than existing inhalers. The final design, Orbital, can deliver the full 400mg dose of mannitol in just five to six inhalations, without the need for the patient to load or reload a single capsule.

Pharmaxis and PA are now pursuing partnerships to develop the Orbital inhaler for CF and a wider range of lung conditions, including tuberculosis.