a suitable liquid composition for use in a spray device for intranasal administration includes a solvent in which the desired concentration of lorazepam can be attained to provide the desired unit - dose in a total sprayed liquid volume that can be delivered by the device and accommodated and absorbed by the subject &# 39 ; s nasal mucosa . lorazepam is insoluble in water . a commercially available injectable composition approved by the fda and sold by wyeth laboratories under the brand name ativan ®, includes 2 mg of lorazepam in 0 . 18 ml of polyethylene glycol 400 in propylene glycol with 2 . 0 % benzyl alcohol as a preservative . this composition was not acceptable for intranasal spray administration because benzyl alcohol is irritating to the mucosa . a suitable composition for use in the invention was prepared as follows . lorazepam was formulated in a liquid composition for use in the practice of the invention . since lorazepam is insoluble in water , the lorazepam was dissolved in polyethylene glycol having an average molecular weight of about 400 (“ peg400 ”), and the solution diluted with propylene glycol . in order to provide for shelf - life stability over a period of up to six - months under typical conditions , a preservative can be added . in a preferred embodiment , an artificial sweeter is also dissolved in the composition . the final composition was as follows : the lorazepam is preferably prepared in the form of a single or unit - dose nasal spray for intranasal administration by a precision dosage manually - activated pump . each 1 ml of nasal spray solution is preferably formulated to contain 10 mg lorazepam . in a preferred delivery system , each actuation of the nasal spray pump delivers 0 . 1 ml of this 10 mg / ml hm solution constituting a 1 mg dose . a smaller dose of the lorazepam hcl can be administered to children . as will be understood by those familiar with the art , dosage forms at lower concentrations of lorazepam can be prepared for administration based upon the patient &# 39 ; s lower body weight , as in the case of children or adults of substantially smaller size . the nasal spray solution has a ph in the range of from about 3 to about 7 , with a ph of about 5 being preferred . the lorazepam composition was placed in containers adapted for use with modified pfeiffer dispensers identified by model / part numbers as 52020 / bsk 7482 . the intranasal applicators of the prior art are modified by increasing the size of the discharge orifice in nose piece to about 0 . 07 mm from about 0 . 05 mm in diameter ( which is typical for an aqueous solution ), i . e ., a 40 % increase in diameter . this increase is necessary to accommodate the higher viscosity of the composition of the invention . the swirl chamber of the prior art precision spray dispenser can be retained . the applicator components are sterilized by methods well known in the art . as will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art , other changes in the design and / or construction of the spray dispenser can be made to accommodate and discharge the more viscous composition of the invention . the lorazepam nasal spray applicators are preferably stored at temperatures in the range of 2 °- 8 ° c . ( 36 °- 48 ° f .) and are protected from light to provide for maximum shelf life . if the applicator body is not transparent , visual inspection of the drug product for signs of deterioration is not possible and attention to the expiration date and storage conditions is important . the optional inclusion of a preservative will serve to extend the shelf life , as will storage under refrigeration . in the last case , the products and dispenser should be brought to room temperature before administration . any expired product is discarded in the appropriate manner . a formulation of lorazepam for intranasal administration was prepared as described above under aseptic conditions in the form of a liquid composition at a concentration of 1 . 0 mg of lorazepam in 0 . 1 ml . the composition was used to fill the required number of single - dose , metered sprayers commercially produced and sold by pfeiffer of america , inc ., each of which sprayers first having been modified as described above . the filling of the containers and their assembly is completed under aseptic conditions since the lorazepam composition cannot withstand the heat of sterilization . each subject received a single spray in each nostril for a total of 2 . 0 mg . a 2 . 0 mg dose is preferred as being within common , safe and labeled doses prescribed . commercially available lorazepam was purchased for im and iv administration . the product was ativan ® injection for parental administration sold by wyeth laboratories , ( a wyeth - ayerst company .) each ml of ativan ® injection is formulated with 2 mg of lorazepam in 0 . 18 ml peg400 in propylene glycol with 2 . 0 % benzyl alcohol as a preservative . the iv doses were diluted according to the label instructions by adding one ml of water . each of the applicators was weighed prior to use and after use . qualified medical personnel took the respective applicators to subjects in a clinical setting ; one dose was administered up each nostril , after which the applicator was recovered for weighing . each subject used two pfeiffer unit dose spray devices , both of which were discarded following the post - use weighing . the iv doses were administered through antecubital veins on the arm opposite to the arm from which samples were taken , injecting the solution over about five minutes . syringes were weighed before and after administration . further details of the protocol , and the results of these studies of the methods and system of the invention and the comparative prior art method follow . a statistical comparison of dose 1 and dose 2 for the pfeiffer unit dose delivery system was done using a paired t - test . analysis of the data for normally functioning devices indicated that the difference between the mean sprays of the two applications using the pfeiffer device was not statistically significant . ( this analysis excluded data from one of the devices that malfunctioned .) a clinical study was undertaken for the purposes of ( 1 ) to assessing the absolute bioavailability of lorazepam by comparing the pharmacokinetics of 2 . 0 mg lorazepam administered by intranasal ( in ) and intravenous ( iv ) routes ; and ( 2 ) to compare pharmacokinetic parameters via in administration to intramuscular ( im ) and intravenous administration . this was undertaken as a single - dose , open - label , three - way crossover , randomized , pilot bioavailability study of lorazepam comparing intranasal administration in healthy human volunteers . twelve healthy non - smoking subjects ( six male and six female ) between the ages of 18 and 35 years were initially selected for this inpatient study . one subject left the study and one subject received delayed doses . study participants were selected based on inclusion / exclusion criteria , history and physical exam , laboratory tests , and other customary procedures . the subjects were within ± 20 % of ideal body weight and no history of allergies , acute or chronic nasal symptoms , significant nasal surgery or abnormalities were reported . eleven of the twelve subjects completed the study according to the protocol . each of the subjects received 3 doses of 2 mg of lorazepam on three separate occasions . no clinically significant protocol violations occurred during this study . the inclusion criteria mentioned abstinence from prescription and non - prescription drugs prior to and during the study , and any medications taken in the 14 days before the study and during the study were noted . subjects abstained from alcoholic and caffeine - containing beverages for 48 hours before the dosing period and during the study . lorazepam for intranasal administration was supplied by the university of kentucky college of pharmacy . lorazepam for intravenous administration (“ iv ”) was supplied as ativan ® 1 mg / ml for subjects 1 , 3 , 8 , and 9 on the first day and for subjects 2 , 4 , 5 , 6 , and 7 on the second study day . lorazepam for intramuscular administration (“ im ”) was supplied as ativan ® 2 mg / ml for subjects 2 , 4 , 5 , 6 and 7 on first study day and for subjects 1 , 3 , 8 and 9 on the second study day . free base content was 1 . 77 mg or 88 . 7 % of stated lorazepam strength ( from molecular weights : 321 . 8 − 36 . 46 = 285 . 34 , 285 . 34 / 321 . 8 = 88 . 7 %) to summarize , the dosages for each of the three routes of administration were as follows : drug administration occurred at approximately 0800 hours following overnight fasting . subjects were allowed up to 360 ml of juice or soft drink one hour before each dose , but were not allowed to eat for one hour after their dose . weight , blood pressure , and pulse were measured prior to dosing and at the end of the study . blood pressure and pulse rate were measured with the subjects seated in an upright position before any corresponding blood sample was collected . blood pressure and pulse rate were measured and recorded on the same arm throughout the study at 0 ( pre - dose ) and 30 minutes , 1 , 2 , 4 , 8 , and 16 hours . the three treatments were separated by one - week washout period . the subject (# 02 ) whose doses were delayed received the final dose within one month of the first dose , was dosed with the other subjects during their first and third periods and received the final treatment two weeks later . she was dosed in the treatment order to which she was randomized . spontaneously reported adverse events were recorded by the subjects throughout the study ; adverse events were also elicited by nondirected interviews . blood samples for the three treatments were collected from each subject according to the following schedule : 0 ( pre - dose ), 5 , 15 , 30 and 45 minutes , and 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 8 , 12 , 18 , 24 and 36 hours following lorazepam administration . the beginning of the iv administration was considered time zero . after collection , the blood was centrifuged in a refrigerated centrifuge at 4 ° c . to separate the plasma and the cells , and the plasma was transferred to polypropylene tubes . the plasma was stored at approximately − 70 ° c . at the study site until shipped to an independent analytical service . the plasma was maintained frozen during shipping and upon arrival at the remote analytical facility , the samples were stored at approximately − 20 ° c . until analyzed . the sample analysis using an lc / ms / ms assay was performed by an independent service in accordance with established protocols . the analytic range for the lorazepam method was 0 . 10 ng to 25 . 00 ng / ml using 1 . 0 ml of human plasma . concentrations less than 1 . 10 ng / ml were reported as below quantitation limit ( bql ). samples with concentrations greater than 25 ng / ml were reanalyzed using a dilution so that the assayed concentration was within the range of 0 . 10 ng to 25 . 00 ng / ml . plasma concentration versus time date for lorazepam were analyzed using noncompartmental pharmacokinetic methods . pharmacokinetic parameters were determined using standard noncompartmental methods with log - linear least square regression analysis to determine the elimination rate constants ( winnonlin , pharsight corp ., palo alto , calif .). the areas under the concentration versus time curves from time zero to infinity ( auc 0 -∞ ) were calculated by a combination of the linear and logarithmic trapezoidal rules , with extrapolation to infinity by dividing the last measurable serum concentration by the elimination rate constant ( λ z .) ( proost , 1985 ). values for the maximum concentration ( c max ) and time to c max ( t max ) were determined by visual inspection of concentration versus time data for each subject . the elimination half - life was determined from 0 . 693 / λ z . the absolute bioavailability ( f ) for the in and im dosage forms , assuming equal 2 mg doses , was determined by f = auc in , 0 -∞ / auc iv , 0 -∞ for the in dose and f = auc im , 0 -∞ / auc iv , 0 -∞ for the im dose . clearance ( cl for iv and cl / f for in and im doses ) was determined by dividing the dose by auc 0 -∞ . volume of distribution at steady state and for elimination ( v ss and v z ) were determined by moment curves ( gibaldi and perrier , 1982 ). table 1 is a summary of pharmacokinetic data for the three doses . absorption of lorazepam following in administration was rapid as indicated by the fact that concentrations were detected in all subjects within five minutes after the in administration . the median t max values were 30 minutes and three hours for the in and im doses , respectively . on average , 0 . 1091 g ( cv 5 . 6 %, n = 21 ) was dispensed from the individual spray pumps as determined by the difference in the pre - and post - weights . ( this data excludes one malfuctioning device of the 22 devices used in this study .) the mean plasma concentration versus time curve profiles for the iv , im and in doses are shown in fig1 . plasma concentrations were still detectable 36 hours after administration . fig1 and 2 are plots of the mean ( n = 11 ) plasma lorazepam concentration versus time graphs following three treatments : ( a ) 2 . 0 mg lorazepam by five minutes iv infusion , ( b ) 2 . 0 mg lorazepam in dose and ( c ) 2 . 0 mg lorazepam im dose . fig1 shows the results over the period following administration ; fig2 is the same data for the 36 hours following administration . results of the clinical measurement of vital signs and body weight exams were recorded and nasal exams were performed . a review of this data failed to reveal any clinically significant safety concerns . there were no serious adverse events and no subjects were discontinued due to adverse effects . subjects commented that they experienced a mild bad taste immediately after the in dose . any safety concerns associated with in are similar to those associated with iv administration . detailed nasal examination demonstrated no pathology of the naso - pharynx after single administration of the lorazepam formulations . the plasma lorazepam concentrations and actual collection times for each of the 11 subjects was tabulated and plasma concentration - time curves for each of the 11 subjects were prepared . the mean concentration - time curves of fig1 and 2 are representative for most subjects ( mean data tabulation ). fig1 is a plot of the mean ( n = 11 ) lorazepam concentration versus time graphs following iv , im and in doses of 2 mg lorazepam during the 4 hours after dose ; fig2 is the same data plotted for 36 hours after the dose . noncompartmental pharmacokinetic analysis was used to evaluate the plasma concentration versus time curves of lorazepam following single 2 . 0 mg doses of lorazepam by intravenous ( iv ), intramuscular ( im ), and intranasal ( in ) routes . individual plasma lorazepam concentration versus time profiles for all subjects were recorded ; number of time points used to estimate the elimination rate constant were also recorded ; and a complete listing of individual and mean pharmacokinetic parameters for all 11 subjects was recorded . table 1 is a summary of the descriptive statistics for lorazepam pharmacokinetic parameters . rapid absorption of lorazepam was observed after the iv and in doses . the t max values were approximately 9 and 18 minutes , on average , for the im and in doses , respectively . the mean t max for the iv infusion was not the first blood sample after the end of the infusion for two reasons . the peak concentration after the iv dose in one subject was not at the first blood sample after the end of the iv infusion , but at the next time point . in the case of subject 4 , acquiring the blood sample immediately following the iv infusion was delayed resulting in the mean t max being affected . as expected , the lorazepam c max and aucs were significantly higher after im and iv administration compared to in administration . mean plasma half - lives and clearance after correcting for bioavailability , were similar for all three treatments . the arithmetic mean value of absolute bioavailability of lorazepam ( 11 subjects ) for the in formulation is 78 %. the plasma levels were comparable to those of the im dose . from the above , it will be understood that a novel composition and method is provided for the safe and controlled intra - nasal administration of precise doses of lorazepam in accordance with a medically prescribed regimen .