Model representation of salicylate pharmacokinetics using unbound plasma salicylate concentrations and metabolite urinary excretion rates following a single oral dose.

The pharmacokinetics of salicylic acid (SA) and its metabolites have been studied in 5 volunteers after administration of 3 g salicylic acid (as sodium salicylate) and collection of serial samples of blood and urine. SA and its metabolites were assayed with a HPLC method specific for each species. The urinary excretion rates of individual metabolites were analyzed using unbound plasma SA concentrations and Lineweaver-Burke plots. The analysis confirmed that the formation of SA urate (SU) and SA phenolic glucuronide (SPG) metabolites are saturable processes, and showed that the Michaelis-Menten values derived are consistent with earlier estimates derived solely from urinary data. The unbound salicylate plasma concentration-time profiles were then analyzed with various models assuming either saturable clearances for metabolite formation and/or saturable protein binding. The data were best described with a model that included both saturable protein binding and saturable metabolism. The model assumed first-order absorption kinetics and instantaneous distribution into extravascular and tissue compartments. The model was validated by comparing predicted relationships between the apparent volume of distribution, clearance, and plasma salicylate concentrations with previous relationships obtained using steady state data.