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Pharmacodynamic and pharmacokinetic measurements of antiepileptic drugs
Author(s) -
Kutt Henn
Publication year - 1974
Publication title -
clinical pharmacology and therapeutics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.941
H-Index - 188
eISSN - 1532-6535
pISSN - 0009-9236
DOI - 10.1002/cpt1974161part2243
Subject(s) - primidone , ethosuximide , medicine , pharmacodynamics , phenobarbital , pharmacokinetics , therapeutic drug monitoring , pharmacology , drug , clinical pharmacology , anesthesia , intensive care medicine , epilepsy , phenytoin , psychiatry
Determinations of blood levels of antiepileptic drugs by gas‐liquid chromatography offer a high degree of specificity; by this method determinations of several drugs can be made simultaneously. Data from various laboratories and clinics show a correlation between: dose and blood level, blood level and therapeutic effects, and blood levels and certain toxic effects, subject to interindividual variations among patients. Data are given for diphenylhydantoin, phenobarbital, primidone, ethosuximide, and trimethadione. In clinical management, monitoring of antiepileptic drug levels has proved useful in several ways: (I) it enables the physician to detect noncompliance; (2) it helps to confirm suspected intoxication in comatose patients or in the very young when clinical signs cannot be elicited; (3) it helps in evaluating the patient with inadequate seizure control; and (4) by establishing the base line level on the current dose, it is helpful in selecting the appropriate dose if a change becomes necessary.