Population pharmacokinetics of piperaquine after two different treatment regimens of dihydroartemisinin-piperaquine in patients with Plasmodium falciparum malaria in Thailand.

• The population pharmacokinetics of piperaquine in adults and children with uncomplicated Plasmodium falciparum malaria treated with two different dosage regimens of dihydroartemisinin-piperaquine were characterized. Piperaquine pharmacokinetics in 98 Burmese and Karen patients aged 3 to 55 years were described by a two-compartment disposition model with first-order absorption and interindividual random variability on all parameters and were similar with the three- and four-dose regimens. Children had a lower body weightnormalized oral clearance than adults, resulting in longer terminal elimination half-lives and higher total exposure to piperaquine (area under the concentration-time curve from 0 to 63 days [AUCday 0–63]). However, children had lower plasma concentrations in the therapeutically relevant posttreatment prophylactic period (AUCday 3–20) because of smaller body weight-normalized central volumes of distribution and shorter distribution half-lives. Our data lend further support to a simplified once-daily treatment regimen to improve treatment adherence and efficacy and indicate that weight-adjusted piperaquine doses in children may need to be higher than in adults.

Subject headings

MEDICIN OCH HÄLSOVETENSKAP  -- Medicinska och farmaceutiska grundvetenskaper -- Farmaceutiska vetenskaper (hsv//swe)

MEDICAL AND HEALTH SCIENCES  -- Basic Medicine -- Pharmaceutical Sciences (hsv//eng)

Keyword

pharmacokinetics malaria

Publication and Content Type

ref (subject category)

art (subject category)