Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 29, 2026

Sampling Cerebrospinal Fluid and Blood from Lateral Tail Vein in Rats During EEG Recordings
Published on: September 1, 2023
Levetiracetam clinical pharmacokinetics in elderly and very elderly patients with epilepsy
M Contin1, S Mohamed, F Albani
1UOC Clinica Neurologica, IRCCS Istituto delle Scienze Neurologiche, [corrected] Department of Neurological Sciences, University of Bologna, Via Foscolo 7, 40123 Bologna, Italy. manuela.contin@unibo.it
Abstract:
We aimed to compare apparent steady-state oral clearance (CL/F) of the antiepileptic drug levetiracetam (LEV) in elderly (66-80 years, n=105) and very elderly (81-96 years, n=70) vs nonelderly (30-65 years, n=97) patients with epilepsy. Median weight-normalized CL/F (mLmin(-1)kg(-1)) decreased from 1.23 (nonelderly) to 0.83 (elderly) and 0.59 (very elderly) (p<0.001). LEV CL/F significantly declines with aging, elderly and very elderly patients requiring an about 30% and 50% lower dose, respectively, compared to nonelderly adults to achieve a given LEV plasma concentration.
Related Concept Videos
Antiepileptic Drugs: Modulators of Neurotransmitter Release Mediated by SV2A Protein
SV2A is a transmembrane glycoprotein located predominantly in the brain, modulating the release of neurotransmitters for neuronal communication. Both levetiracetam and brivaracetam exhibit a high affinity for...
Pharmacokinetics in Geriatric Patients: Effect of Age on Drug Excretion
Pharmacokinetics in Geriatric Patients: Effect of Age on Drug Metabolism
Pharmacokinetics in Geriatric Patients: Effect of Age on Drug Absorption
Pharmacokinetics in Geriatric Patients: Effect of Age on Drug Distribution
Pharmacodynamics in Geriatric Patients: Effects of Age
