Pharmacokinetics and Arteriovenous Differences in Clevidipine Concentration following a Short- and a Long-term Intravenous Infusion in Healthy Volunteers

Abstract

Background Clevidipine is an ultra-short-acting calcium antagonist developed for reduction and control of blood pressure during cardiac surgery. The objectives of the current study were to determine the pharmacokinetics of clevidipine after 20-min and 24-h intravenous infusions, and to determine the relation between the arterial and venous concentrations and the hemodynamic responses to clevidipine in healthy volunteers. Methods Four volunteers received clevidipine for 20 min, and eight subjects were administered clevidipine intravenously for 24 h at two different dose rates. Arterial and venous blood samples were drawn for pharmacokinetic evaluation, and blood pressure and heart rate were recorded. Results A triexponential disposition model described the pharmacokinetics of clevidipine. The mean arterial blood clearance of clevidipine was 0.069l/kg-1/min-1 and the mean volume of distribution at steady state was 0.19 l/kg. The duration of the infusion had negligible effect on the pharmacokinetic parameters, and the context-sensitive half-time for clevidipine, simulated from the mean pharmacokinetic parameters derived after 24 h infusion at the highest dose, was less than 1 min. The arterial blood levels reached steady state within 2 min of the start of infusion and were about twice as high as those in the venous blood at steady state. The peak response preceded the peak venous concentration and was slightly delayed from the peak arterial blood concentration. Conclusion Clevidipine is a high clearance drug with a small volume of distribution, resulting in extremely short half-lives in healthy subjects. The initial rapid increase in the arterial blood concentrations and the short equilibrium time between the blood and the biophase suggest that clevidipine can be rapidly titrated to the desired effect.