The pharmacokinetic aspects of therapy with psychotropic agents

This contribution is concerned with a critical appraisal of the concept that plasma levels of psychotropic agents govern their pharmacodynamic action. In this regard, there are at least three problems: 1. identification of the chemical course of reaction between the introduced pharmacon and its resultant metabolites in reference to the totality of the organism and its biochemical reaction pattern; 2. the course of this reaction relative to intra- and interindividual differences; and 3. the influence of the kinetics as a result of concentration diversities, conditioned by different distributing patterns within the organism. Decisive factors here are: mode of application, blood distribution volume, reaction and/or elimination rate, and, finally, interaction of combined drugs.