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Buprenorphine kinetics
Author(s) -
Bullingham Roy E S,
McQuay Henry J,
Moore Andrew,
Bennett Martin R D
Publication year - 1980
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 - 10.1038/clpt.1980.219
Subject(s) - buprenorphine , anesthesia , medicine , radioimmunoassay , pharmacokinetics , pain relief , kinetics , clinical pharmacology , half life , plasma concentration , pharmacology , chemistry , opioid , physics , receptor , quantum mechanics
Buprenorphine kinetics was determined in surgical patients using radioimmunoassay. Buprenorphine was measured in the plasma of 24 patients who had received 0.3 mg buprenorphine intraoperatively. After 3 hr 10 of these patients then received a further 0.3 mg buprenorphine intravenously for postoperative pain relief, and 11 patients were given 0.3 mg intramuscularly: again, plasma levels were measured for 3 hr. The data fitted closely to a triexponential decay curve. There was a very fast initial phase, with a half‐life (t½) of 2 min. The terminal t½ was slow, approximately 3 hr. Comparison of the kinetics of the same patient, awake and anesthetized, showed that the clearance was significantly lower in the anesthetized state. A notable feature of the drug given intramuscularly is rapid systemic availability, so that peaks are obtained in 2 to 5 min, and in 10 min the resulting levels are the same as for the intravenous and intramuscular routes. Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics (1980) 28, 667–672; doi: 10.1038/clpt.1980.219