Kinetics of nortriptyline in man according to a two compartment model

Plasma concentrations of nortriptyline have been assayed in four subjects after intravenous infusion of 57 mg nortriptyline hydrochloride. The data were evaluated according to a two compartment open model. The calculated best-fitting curves were in good agreement with the experimental data, better than could be expected from a simpler model. This justifies the assumption that the kinetics of nortriptyline in man may be described by this model with an appropriate input function. The data permitted estimation of all the parameters of the model. The meaning of the parameters is discussed, particularly in relation to individual variation.