Effect of food on salsalate absorption

To assess the effect of food on salsalate absorption, single 1500-mg oral doses of salsalate were administered to 17 men under fasted and fed conditions according to a randomized open-label crossover design. A 7-day washout separated treatment periods. Blood samples were drawn throughout the 48-h period following dose administration and the resulting plasma samples assayed by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) for unchanged drug, salsalate, and the major metabolite, salicylic acid. When results for the fasted and fed treatments were compared, no significant differences were observed in the pharmacokinetic parameters for the major metabolite salicylic acid or in the extent of absorption of unchanged drug; however, the rate of salsalate absorption was affected. Although the time-to-peak for salsalate was significantly delayed by approximately 1 h in the presence of food, the peak level was not significantly affected. The lack of difference between the two treatments for the therapeutic moiety, salicylic acid, indicates a lack of a significant food effect on single doses of salsalate.