Influence of concurrent and staggered dosing of semi-solid nutrients on the pharmacokinetics of orally administered carbamazepine in rats.

ABSTRACT

In the present study, we examined the effects of concurrent and staggered dosing of PG-soft ace-MP TM (PG), novel semi-solid enteral nutrients, on the pharmacokinetics of orally administered carbamazepine (CBZ) in rats due to the high possibility of drug interaction during the absorption process. The pharmacokinetic behavior of CBZ was considerably altered when administered concurrently with PG. The maximum serum CBZ concentration (Cmax) significantly decreased and the mean residence time (MRT) significantly increased. The elimination constant (ke) also significantly increased, but there were no significant changes in the area under the serum CBZ concentration versus time curve (AUC) and the time to reach Cmax (Tmax). However, these changes in the pharmacokinetic parameters were eliminated by waiting 20 min, the time interval equivalent to the Tmax described above, between CBZ administration and PG dosing. This study suggested that PG interferes with CBZ absorption from the digestive tract, although staggered administration of CBZ and PG prevented their interaction.