Phenobarbital in the Monitoring of Compliance

Letters and Corrections1 July 1984Phenobarbital in the Monitoring of ComplianceMORGAN FEELY, M.D., M.R.C.P.I., DAVID PRICE, M.B., M.R.C.P., JONATHAN COOKE, M.PHARM.MORGAN FEELY, M.D., M.R.C.P.I.Search for more papers by this author, DAVID PRICE, M.B., M.R.C.P.Search for more papers by this author, JONATHAN COOKE, M.PHARM.Search for more papers by this authorAuthor, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/0003-4819-101-1-138_2 SectionsAboutPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail ExcerptTo the editor: In their review, Eraker and associates (1) rightly point out that pharmacokinetic differences between drugs and patients have greatly limited the usefulness of measurements of (therapeutic) drug levels or pharmacologic markers in the assessment of compliance. We suggest that phenobarbital, a drug used extensively for more than 70 years, in the appropriate dosage, can serve as a widely applicable, quantitative indicator of compliance.Phenobarbital has a half-life of about 4 days in adults. Observations made during inpatient treatment (2) and in a prospective study that included monthly blood level monitoring (3) suggest that once age is taken...References1. ERAKER S, KIRSCHT J, and BECKER M. Understanding and improving patient compliance. Ann Intern Med. 1984;100:258-68. LinkGoogle Scholar2. SVENSMARK O and BUCHTHAL F. Diphenylhydantoin and phenobarbital: serum levels in children. Am J Dis Child. 1964;108:82-7. CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar3. FEELY M, O'CALLAGHAN M, DUGGAN B, and CALLAGHAN N. Phenobarbitone in previously untreated epilepsy. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry. 1980;43:365-8. CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar4. PERUCCA E, RUPRAH M, RICHENS A, PARK B, BETTERIDGE D, and HEDGES A. Effect of low dose phenobarbitone on five indirect indices of hepatic microsomal enzyme induction and plasma lipoproteins in normal subjects. Br J Clin Pharmacol. 1981;12:529-96. CrossrefGoogle Scholar5. MATTSON R and CRAMER J. Phenobarbital: toxicity. In: WOODBURY DM, PENRY JK, PIPPINGER CE, eds. Antiepileptic Drugs. 2nd ed. New York: Raven Press; 1982:359. Google Scholar This content is PDF only. To continue reading please click on the PDF icon. Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAuthors: MORGAN FEELY, M.D., M.R.C.P.I.; DAVID PRICE, M.B., M.R.C.P.; JONATHAN COOKE, M.PHARM.Affiliations: University of Leeds The General Infirmary Leeds LS1 3EX United Kingdom PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetails Metrics Cited byThe effect of low-dose phenobarbitone on three indices of hepatic microsomal enzyme induction. 1 July 1984Volume 101, Issue 1Page: 138-139KeywordsBloodDrugsHalf lifeInpatientsPharmacokineticsProspective studiesTherapeutic drug monitoring ePublished: 1 December 2008 Issue Published: 1 July 1984 PDF downloadLoading ...