1. A method of treating postoperative pain in a patient in need of such treatment, which method comprises administering to said patient a buprenorphine-containing transdermal dosage form prior to surgery.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein the buprenorphine-containing transdermal dosage form is applied 12-96 hours prior to surgery.
3. The method of claim 1 further comprising the administration of a second buprenorphine-containing transdermal dosage form for a second dosing period post-operatively, wherein said second dosage form comprises the same dosage of buprenorphine as, or a greater dosage of buprenorphine than, said first dosage form.
4. The method of claim 1 further comprising extended subsequent dosing periods with subsequent dosage forms for a given time period as needed by the patient to achieve desired analgesia.
5. The method of claim 1, wherein the method further comprises a rapid dose escalation of buprenorphine patches to achieve the desired preoperative dosage level, wherein the method involves:
(a) administering to the patient a first buprenorphine-containing transdermal dosage form for a first dosing period that is no longer than 5 days;
(b) administering to the patient a second buprenorphine-containing transdermal dosage form for a second dosing period that is no longer than 5 days, wherein the second dosage form comprises the same dosage of buprenorphine as, or a greater dosage of buprenorphine than, the first dosage form; and
(c) administering to the patient a third buprenorphine-containing transdermal dosage form for a third dosing period, wherein the third dosage form comprises a greater dosage of buprenorphine than the second dosage form, and the third dosage form is the desired dosage level for the postoperative pain control.
6. The method of claim 5, wherein the method is initiated 4-10 days prior to surgery.
7. The method of claim 1, wherein said dosage form comprises at least 5 mg of buprenorphine.
8. The method of claim 3, wherein said second dosage form comprises 10 mg of buprenorphine.
9. The method of claim 3, wherein said second dosage form comprises 20 mg of buprenorphine.
10. The method of claim 3, wherein said second dosage form comprises 30 mg of buprenorphine.
11. The method of claim 3, wherein said second dosage form comprises 40 mg of buprenorphine.
12. The method of claim 1, wherein said surgery is a simple surgery.
13. The method of claim 12, wherein said simple surgery is arthroscopic surgery.
14. The method of claim 12, wherein said simple surgery is an excision of a mass.
15. The method of claim 12, wherein said simple surgery is hernia repair.
16. The method of claim 1, wherein the surgery is spinal fusion.
17. The method of claim 1, wherein the surgery is intrathoracic surgery.
18. The method of claim 17, wherein the intrathoracic surgery is coarctation repair.
19. The method of claim 1, wherein the surgery is pelvic surgery.
20. The method of claim 19, wherein the surgery is transabdominal hysterectomy.
21. The method of claim 1, wherein said transdermal administration is produced by a transdermal system selected from the group consisting of a topical gel, a lotion, an ointment, a transmucosal system, a transmucosal device, and an iontophoretic delivery system.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
1. An image sensor comprising:
an array of pixel sensors; and
a control circuit outside the array, wherein the control circuit comprises a first transistor having a gate under control of a reference signal and a current mirror circuit coupled to drive a control line of the array with a mirrored current that mirrors a current through the first transistor, wherein a plurality of the pixel sensors in the array are coupled to the control line, and wherein
each of the pixel sensors that are coupled to the control line comprises:
a photodiode;
a second transistor having a gate coupled to a node of the photodiode;
a third transistor having a terminal coupled to the node of the photodiode and a gate coupled to a terminal of the second transistor;
a fourth transistor, the fourth transistors in the pixel sensors receiving respective selection signals that select which of the pixel sensors conducts the mirrored current; and
a fifth transistor that is between the control line and the gate of the third transistor, wherein
the second, third, fourth, and fifth transistors are the only transistors in the pixel sensor; and
each of the second, third, fourth, and fifth transistors is an NMOS transistor.
2. The sensor of claim 1, wherein the current mirror circuit comprises:
a first PMOS transistor connected in series with the first transistor, the first PMOS transistor having a gate and a drain coupled together; and
a second PMOS transistor having a gate coupled to the gate of the first PMOS transistor and a drain coupled to the control line.
3. The sensor of claim 1, wherein:
the control line is one of a plurality of column lines in the array; and
for each of the column lines, the control circuit comprises a reference transistor having a gate under control of the reference signal and a current mirror circuit coupled to drive the column line with a mirrored current that mirrors a current through the reference transistor, the first transistor being the reference transistor for one of the column lines.
4. The sensor of claim 1, wherein the control line is a column line of the array, and the fourth transistors have gates coupled to respective row lines of the array.