The metabolism of digitoxin in hepatic cirrhosis of human subjects.

Abstract

Digitoxin, 1 mg, was orally administered to 12 cirrhotic patients (the 6 in a clinically compensated and the 6 in a decompensated state) and their serum concentrations were measured at 6 hours and everyday through 7 days by radioimmunoassay. The serum half-life of digitoxin in these groups and normal subjects, determined from the serum concentrations, was as follows: 4.7 +/- 0.55 days for controls, 4.9 +/- 0.45 days for the compensated group and 5.3 +/- 0.35 days for the decompensated group. No statistically significant difference could be found in half-life among these groups. (P less than 0.2). The same dose of digitoxin was orally administered to 6 cirrhotic patients and 6 control subjects and their left ventricular systolic time intervals, LVET and QS2, were determined at 6 hours and every morning for 7 days. Cardiac responses, exhibited by decrease in the systolic time intervals, in both control subjects and cirrhotic patients dissipated in fair parallel during the ensuing 4 days and returned to base line level by 5 days. From these both biological half-life and physiological effect, it may be concluded that overall metabolism of digitoxin in cirrhotic patients is not disturbed.

• Authors: H Hamamoto, H Takeda, T Katoh, T Tokuoka, K Kitamura, T Takanashi, M Bamba
• Journal: Japanese circulation journal (Jpn Circ J) Vol. 42 Issue 7 Pg. 893-900 (Jul 1978) ISSN: 0047-1828 [Print] Japan
• PMID: 713028 (Publication Type: Journal Article)

Chemical References

• Digitoxin

Topics

• Administration, Oral
• Adult
• Digitoxin (administration & dosage, blood, metabolism)
• Humans
• Liver Cirrhosis (blood, metabolism)
• Middle Aged
• Myocardial Contraction (drug effects)
• Radioimmunoassay