CC16 – Drug elimination

CC16. Drug elimination is the removal of drug from the body through metabolic and/or excretory processes.

16.1. Drug excretion refers solely to the physical processes that lead to the irreversible removal of a drug and its metabolites from the body, while metabolism refers to the chemical modification of drugs within the body.

16.2. Drugs and metabolites are excreted primarily via the kidneys into the urine. Other physiological excretion mechanisms include biliary, lactation, exhalation, sweating and salivation.

16.3. Rates of elimination can be constant (zero-order kinetics) or can be proportional to the plasma concentration (first-order kinetics).

16.4. The elimination rate constant describes the fraction of drug eliminated per unit time (e.g., /h).

16.5. The elimination rate is the mass of drug eliminated per unit time (e.g., mg h^-1).