[Digestive absorption, fixation and excretion of oral disulfiram in the rat]

Absorption, distribution and excretion of disulfiram and of one of its metabolites, diethyldithiocarbamate, were studied in rats orally treated with disulfiram (25 or 250 mg/kg). It was noted that this compound is absorbed in a proportion of 70-90 per cent of the administered dose but that diethyldithiocarbamate can appear already in the gut. After absorption, disulfiram and diethyldithiocarbamate impregnate specifically some tissues such as liver, kidney and muscle; blood and brain contain little or no disulfiram. The largest dose of disulfiram decreases fecal bolus and increases urinary volume favouring perhaps excretion of diethyldithiocarbamate.