Charcoal and isoniazid pharmacokinetics.

Area of Science:

• Pharmacokinetics and Toxicology
• Drug Metabolism and Elimination

Background:

• Isoniazid is a crucial medication for tuberculosis treatment.
• Overdose of isoniazid can lead to severe toxicity, including hepatotoxicity and neurotoxicity.
• Activated charcoal is a common intervention for poisoning to reduce drug absorption.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the efficacy of activated charcoal in reducing isoniazid absorption when administered one hour post-ingestion.
• To determine the impact of delayed activated charcoal administration on isoniazid pharmacokinetics.

Main Methods:

• Six healthy subjects received a 600 mg oral dose of isoniazid.
• Activated charcoal (10 g) was administered one hour after the isoniazid dose.
• Plasma concentrations of isoniazid were measured over time to calculate the area under the curve (AUC).

Main Results:

• Activated charcoal administration one hour after isoniazid did not significantly reduce the area under the plasma concentration-time curve (AUC).
• The pharmacokinetic profile of isoniazid was minimally affected by delayed charcoal intervention.

Conclusions:

• Activated charcoal is unlikely to be beneficial in treating isoniazid poisoning if its administration is delayed by one hour or more.
• The timing of activated charcoal administration is critical for its effectiveness in isoniazid overdose management.