抄録
Because acetaminophen (ACAP) is entirely absorbed from the small bowel while little is absorbed from the stomach, its pharmacokinetic parameters after oral doses have frequently been used to assess the gastric emptying rate (GER), including the plasma ACAP concentration at a fixed t time (Ct), the maximum plasma concentration (Cmax), the time to reach Cmax (tmax), and the area under the plasma concentration-time curve from zero to t time (AUCt). However, none of these are ideal because they depend not only on the rate but also on the extent of absorption, and because multiple blood samples are necessary for calculating them. Under these circumstances, we have found a simple and reasonable index, the C2t/Ct ratio, for the assessment of GER. This index is independent of the extent of absorption, and is easy to compute, requiring only two serial blood samples once t is fixed. However, in this study, a direct comparison has not been made between the new index and the emptying half time measured by the scintigraphic method, which is now the “gold standard” of the GER measurement. Further studies are needed on the relationship between the two to validate the new index.
