Valeritas touts h-Patch CBD study

Valeritas (NSDQ:VLRX) today announced positive results from its preclinical pharmacokinetic study of cannabidiol subcutaneous infusion.

The study focused on delivering cannabidiol (CBD) through subcutaneous infusion through the company’s h-Patch Wearable Device. The results were presented at the CannMed Conference in Pasadena, Calif.

Results from the study showed rapid and robust absorption and distribution of 40mg of CBD delivered over a 24 hour period using the h-Patch technology. Researchers detected CBD within one hour of the start of infusion followed by prolonged elimination with near steady-state levels that were detected 24 hours after infusion and 48 hours in total.

Peak plasma levels were equal to published human dose-normalized plasma concentrations from single oral administration of 300mg of CBD, resulting in an 87% reduction of CBD dosage.

“The study demonstrates our h-Patch technology has the potential of dramatically lowering the overall amount of CBD needed to achieve therapeutic levels while providing reliable and uniform dosing,” president & CEO John Timberlake said in a news release.

The h-Patch is a drug delivery technology that delivers injectable medicines subcutaneously. Oral CBD has very low bioavailability in humans in a range of 6-10%, according to the company. One reported concern is the long-term effect CBD can have on the liver from exposure to toxic metabolites. Valeritas said that the h-Patch provides a continuous basal delivery rate over a period of 24 hours.

Subcutaneous infusion of CBD through the h-Patch enables a prolonged half-life, minimization of the variation in CBD metabolism and reduces the amount of drug metabolized by the liver as opposed to oral dosage, according to the company.