System and process for formation of a time-released, drug-eluting transferable coating

1. A method for forming an implantable, drug-eluting coating on the surface of an expandable medical device, characterized by the steps of:

mounting an expandable delivery device on each of a plurality of conducting members such that each conducting member is internally disposed within a different one of a plurality of expandable delivery device, the conducting members being oriented around a circle;

delivering preselected potentials with each conducting member to a surface of the expandable delivery devices in which the conducting member is disposed to optimize collection of coating particles on the surfaces of the expandable delivery device; and

coating the expandable delivery devices with coating particles delivered via an e-RESS process, an e-STAT process, or a combined e-RESS process and e-STAT process to form one or more coating layers on the surfaces thereof,

wherein the coating particles are concurrently delivered to the surfaces of each one of the plurality of delivery devices via an e-RESS coating nozzle, an E-STAT coating nozzle, or the e-RESS coating nozzle and the E-STAT coating nozzle.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein each expandable delivery device is a medical balloon.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein at least one coating layer of each expandable delivery device includes a drug-eluting component and at least one coating layer includes a biosorbable polymer forming the implantable drug eluting coating on the surfaces of the devices.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the coating provides transfer of at least a portion of the one or more coating layers upon contact with a host vessel.

5. The method of claim 2 , where the medical balloons comprise nylon.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein each expandable delivery device is at least a portion of a medical implant device.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein each expandable delivery device is an interventional device.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein each expandable delivery device is a diagnostic device.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein each expandable delivery device is mounted to a delivery device prior to insertion into a host vessel.

10. The method of claim 9 , wherein each delivery device is a catheter.

11. The method of claim 1 , wherein a conduction of charge on the surface is via gas-phase conduction or surface conduction of charge.

12. The method of claim 1 , wherein the delivering includes applying an electrostatic field potential on the surfaces of each expandable delivery device of at least about 15 kV prior to the coating step with the e-STAT process.

13. The method of claim 3 , wherein the biosorbable polymer and drug eluting component are located within the same coating layer.

14. The method of claim 3 , wherein the coating includes coating the surfaces simultaneously with the e-RESS process and the e-STAT process to encapsulate a drug and a biosorbable polymer in a single layer of the drug-eluting coating.

15. The method of claim 3 , wherein the drug-eluting component includes a drug dispersed within a biosorbable polymer disposed in a single coating layer.

16. The method of claim 3 , wherein the biosorbable polymer and drug-eluting component are located in different coating layers.

17. The method of claim 1 , wherein at least one coating layer includes a binding component comprising polylactoglycolic acid (PLGA).

18. The method of claim 1 , wherein each expandable delivery device is at least partially expanded during coating of same.

19. The method of claim 3 , wherein at least a portion of the biosorbable polymer has a preselected molecular weight that enhances transferability of the drug-eluting coating to a receiving surface within a host vessel.

20. The method of claim 19 , wherein the drug is a time-released drug that provides time-selectivity for treatment of a host or patient.

21. The method of claim 19 , wherein the drug has a crystalline form.

22. The method of claim 19 , wherein the drug comprises sirolimus.

23. The method of claim 1 , wherein the coating includes masking one or more preselected portions of each expandable delivery device.

24. The method of claim 23 , wherein the masking includes forming preselected shapes selected from: oval, square, rectangle, triangular, or cylindrical within the coating layers on the surfaces of the expandable delivery devices that contain an active drug delivered in the drug-eluting coating when in contact with a receiving surface.

25. The method of claim 1 , wherein at least one coating layer includes a releasing agent selected from the group consisting of: hydrophilic or hydrophobic chemicals or polymers that lower the interfacial energy between the surface of the medical device and the coating layers, water soluble chemicals or polymers that dissolve to eliminate adhesion between coatings layers and the medical device surface, brittle or friable coatings that lose mechanical cohesion upon, polyethylene glycols (PEG), hydrogels, polyesters, polyacrylates, polysaccharides, silicones, silanes, tocopherol, glycerin, sucrose, cellulose, shellac, and combinations thereof providing release of the coating to the receiving surface upon contact with same.

26. The method of claim 25 , wherein the releasing agent is located within a coating layer disposed between the surface of the expandable delivery device and a first layer comprising a biosorbable polymer.

27. The method of claim 1 , wherein at least one coating layer on the surface of the expandable delivery device comprises a low-energy releasing agent selected from the group consisting of: a releasing agent with surface energy of less than 35 dynes/cm or agents onto which a drop of water would experience a contact angle of greater than 90 degrees, polyvinyl alcohols (PVA), ethylene vinyl acetates (EVA), folyolefins, fluorosilanes, fluoroacrylates, fluorohydrocarbons, paraffin, long chain hydrocarbons, and combinations thereof.

28. The method of claim 27 , wherein the low-energy releasing agent is located within a coating layer disposed between the surface of the expandable delivery device and a first layer comprising a biosorbable polymer.

29. The method of claim 1 , wherein at least one coating layer on the surface of the expandable delivery device comprises an adhesive agent selected from the group consisting of: agents with cationic moieties that assist in cellular adhesion/uptake, shattering agents that penetrate tissue surface and promote adhesion through mechanical entanglement, viscous polymeric agents, and cationic polyamino acids such as polyarginine, polylysine, polyhistidine, and polyethyleneimine (PEI), 3,4-dihydroxy-L-phenylalanine (dopa), (as in active component in mussel adhesive), laminins, cationic surfactant molecules such as didodecyldimethylammonium bromide (DMAB), ethylhexadecyldimethylammonium bromide, dodecyltrimethyl ammonium bromide, tetradodecylammonium bromide, dimethylditetradecylammonium bromide, detrabutylammonium iodide, DEAE-dextran hydrochloride, and hexadimethrine bromide, and combinations thereof that affixes the coating to a receiving surface upon expansion of the expandable delivery device.

30. The method of claim 29 , wherein the adhesive agent enhances adhesion with the receiving surface.

31. The method of claim 29 , wherein the adhesive agent is included with a biosorbable polymer in a single coating layer on the surface of the expandable delivery device.

32. The method of claim 1 , wherein at least one coating layer includes both a biosorbable polymer and either a drug or a therapeutic agent to provide timed-release delivery of the drug or the therapeutic agent by dissolution of the biosorbable polymer layer.

33. The method of claim 1 , wherein at least one coating layer of the coating on the surface of the expandable delivery device contains therapeutic drug particles modified with a surface charge prior.

34. The method of claim 1 , wherein the coating particles are of a size between about 0.01 micrometers and about 10 micrometers.

35. The method of claim 1 , further including the step of sintering the coating to form a dense, thermally stable film on the surfaces of each expandable delivery device prior to delivery of same at a temperature in the range from about 25° C. to about 150° C.

36. The method of claim 35 , wherein the sintering includes sintering the coating in the presence of a solvent gas to form a dense, thermally stable film on the surfaces of each expandable delivery device.

37. The method of claim 1 , further including a step of transferring at least a portion of the coating from at least one of the expandable delivery devices to a receiving surface of a host vessel to form a drug-eluting deposit therein.

38. The method of claim 37 , wherein the transferring step includes expanding the expandable delivery device to transfer and implant at least a portion of the drug-eluting coating to the receiving surface of the host vessel.

39. The method of claim 38 , wherein the step of expanding includes expanding the expandable delivery device using a fluid that maintains rigidity and integrity along an external surface of the delivery device.

40. The method of claim 38 , wherein the expanding includes at least partially deflating the expandable delivery device to reduce the physical dimensions of the expandable delivery device when inserting the delivery device into the host vessel prior to transferring the coating to the receiving surface of the host vessel.

41. The method of claim 1 , wherein each of the internally disposed conducting members are located on a ring and extend along a longitudinal axis of a respective expandable delivery device and substantially an entire length of the respective expandable delivery devices.

42. The method of claim 41 , wherein the mounting step includes contacting each of the plurality of expandable delivery devices with the ring.

43. The method of claim 42 , wherein the ring includes upper and lower rings, the plurality of expandable delivery devices being in contact with the upper ring.