Effects of inflammatory disease on plasma oxprenolol concentrations.

Abstract

When single oral doses of oxprenolol were given to three healthy subjects on three separate occasions under standardised conditions the plasma concentration-time curves for each subject were closely similar. In two of the subjects, however, a mild illness led to a dramatic, temporary increase in the peak plasma concentration and area under the plasma concentration-time curve (AUC). This effect of inflammatory disease was confirmed by comparing a group of patients with an erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) of over 20 mm in the first hour with a group whose ESR was below this value. The mean peak plasma concentration and AUC were significantly higher in the group with a raised ESR. This may be related to altered concentrations of one of the acute-phase proteins. Thus it is concluded that plasma oxprenolol concentrations are raised in inflammatory disease, but further work is needed to determine the mechanism of this increase.