Related Experiment Video
Updated: Feb 11, 2026
08:59
An Intestine/Liver Microphysiological System for Drug Pharmacokinetic and Toxicological Assessment
Published on: December 3, 2020
8.7K
Pharmacokinetics in geriatric psychiatry
Kristin L Bigos1, Marci L Chew, Robert R Bies
1Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Pittsburgh, 3501 Terrace Street, 805 Salk Hall, Pittsburgh, PA 15261, USA.
Current Psychiatry Reports
|February 14, 2008
Summary
Understanding drug pharmacokinetics in older adults is crucial for safe and effective therapy. Population pharmacokinetics offers a minimally invasive method to study drug disposition and response in this population.
Area of Science:
- Geriatric Pharmacology
- Clinical Pharmacy
- Psychiatric Drug Development
Background:
- Aging alters drug disposition due to physiological changes (e.g., hepatic/renal function).
- Studying pharmacokinetics in older adults presents challenges in minimally invasive data collection.
- Population pharmacokinetics (PopPK) is a valuable tool for assessing drug exposure in diverse populations.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review pharmacokinetic studies in older adults, particularly within psychiatry.
- To highlight advancements in drug formulations and enantiomer/metabolite-specific drug development.
- To emphasize the importance of understanding age-related pharmacokinetic differences.
Main Methods:
- Review of existing pharmacokinetic studies in older adult populations.
- Analysis of new psychiatric and neurological drug approvals.
- Examination of novel drug formulations (e.g., extended-release, transdermal).
Main Results:
- Population pharmacokinetics enables large-scale, minimally invasive pharmacokinetic assessments.
- New psychiatric/neurologic drugs often feature improved pharmacokinetic profiles.
- Development considers specific enantiomers or metabolites for targeted action.
Conclusions:
- Pharmacokinetic understanding is vital for optimizing drug therapy in the elderly.
- Population pharmacokinetics is a key methodology for studying this demographic.
- Novel drug formulations and targeted development enhance safety and efficacy in older adults.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
01:15Drug Dosing: Geriatric Patients
278
Elderly individuals encompass a diverse population with varying degrees of age-related physiological changes. Defining the elderly presents challenges, as the geriatric population is often arbitrarily categorized as individuals older than 65. However, many individuals in this group lead active and healthy lives, with an increasing number surpassing 85 years and falling into the older elderly category. Physiological changes associated with aging impact performance capacity and homeostatic...
278
01:22Pharmacokinetics in Geriatric Patients: Effect of Age on Drug Absorption
713
As individuals age, their body's physiology evolves, affecting drug pharmacokinetics. The most apparent changes occur in the gastrointestinal tract, where an increase in gastric pH, a delay in gastric emptying, and a reduction in gastrointestinal motility are observed. Remarkably, these changes do not substantially modify the absorption of orally administered drugs, particularly those absorbed via passive diffusion.Transdermal drug delivery emerges as a highly viable method for older adults due...
713
01:18Pharmacokinetics in Geriatric Patients: Effect of Age on Drug Excretion
259
In geriatric patients, renal physiology undergoes significant changes, including diminished renal blood flow and a lower glomerular filtration rate (GFR), leading to alterations in medication clearance. Drugs such as aminoglycoside antibiotics, lithium, and digoxin, which rely on glomerular filtration for removal from the body, particularly impact pharmacokinetics. These drugs tend to have slower clearance rates in older adults, necessitating careful dosage considerations.Evaluation of renal...
259
01:00Pharmacokinetics in Geriatric Patients: Effect of Age on Drug Distribution
264
Drug distribution in the human body is influenced by several factors, including plasma protein concentration, body composition, blood flow, tissue-protein concentration, and tissue fluid pH. Among these, changes in plasma protein concentration and body composition due to aging significantly affect how drugs are distributed within the body. Specifically, aging is associated with a decrease in albumin levels by about 10% and an increase in α1-acid glycoprotein levels. These alterations are...
264
01:18Pharmacokinetics in Geriatric Patients: Effect of Age on Drug Metabolism
223
Geriatric patients show significant variation in how their bodies process medications, which can change how effective and safe treatments are. The liver is the primary organ where drug metabolism occurs, involving two main types of chemical reactions: phase I and II. Phase I metabolism is driven by the cytochrome P450 enzyme system, which includes key types such as CYP3A, CYP2D6, and CYP2C9. Research indicates that while aging doesn't notably alter the levels or activity of these enzymes, it...
223
01:27Pharmacodynamics in Geriatric Patients: Effects of Age
241
Age-related pharmacokinetic changes are extensively documented, but understanding age-related pharmacodynamic alterations is relatively limited. This knowledge gap can be partly attributed to the complexity of developing appropriate measures of drug responses compared to bioanalytical methods for determining drug concentrations.Most information regarding age-related differences in human pharmacodynamics originates from cross-sectional studies. However, these studies assume that observed mean...
241