Comparative pharmacokinetics of amoxicillin and ampicillin in infants and children

C. M. Ginsburg, G. H. McCracken, M. L. Thomas, J. Clahsen

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

46 Scopus citations

Abstract

The pharmacokinetics of amoxicillin and ampicillin were studied in 24 infants and children. Mean peak serum concentrations of 5.4 μg/ml in fasting and 3.2 μg/ml in nonfasting patients were observed after 15 mg/kg amoxicillin doses. Area under the curve values and serum half life values were similar in fasting and nonfasting patients. The pharmacokinetics of amoxicillin (15mg/kg) were compared to those of ampicillin (25 mg/kg). Peak serum concentrations, area under the curve values and half life times were comparable for the two drugs. Amoxicillin (25 mg/kg) and ampicillin (25 mg/kg) were compared in cross over fashion in 11 children. Serum concentrations of amoxicillin were consistently larger than those of ampicillin; the differences were of borderline significance at one and two hours and statistically significant at four and six hours after the dosage. The bioavailability of amoxicillin was twice that of ampicillin. Amoxicillin was detected in approximately half of the saliva samples studied. Although the salivary concentrations in many children exceeded the inhibitory level for most pneumococci and group A streptococci and for many non β lactamase producing Haemophilus influenzae type b strains, the clinical relevance of these observations is unknown.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)627-631
Number of pages5
JournalPediatrics
Volume64
Issue number5 II Suppl.
StatePublished - Dec 1 1979

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Pediatrics, Perinatology, and Child Health

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