Hemodialysis of phenytoin in a uremic patient

Removal of phenytoin by hemodialysis was determined in a uremic patient. The rate of appearance of the drug in dialysate, the plasma concentration with time, and the plasma clearance by dialysis were measured. Plasma protein binding of phenytoin was also determined. In spite of greatly reduced plasma protein binding in the uremic patient, removal rate was observed to be less than 10% of the rate of presentation of the dialyzer. During the 6-hr period of dialysis, the plasma concentration showed little change. The amount collected in the dialyase, 43.6 mg, was only a small fraction of drug in the body. These results indicate that replacement of phenytoin based on the amount of drug removed by dialysis is unnecessary in chronically dialyzed uremic patients. In addition, the utility of hemodialysis in phenytoin overdose is questioned.