DOES DIABETES MELLITUS AFFECT THE PLASMA CONCENTRATION OF ANTITUBERCULOSIS AGENTS?

Abdallah Abdallah Mahjoub*, Syed Azhar Syed Suliman, Amer Hayat Khan, Razak Lajis, Irfhan Ali Bin Hyder Ali

Plasma concentrations of isoniazid, rifampicin, and pyrazinamide were measured in 22 diabetic and 22 non-diabetic pulmonary tuberculosis patients by high performance liquid chromatographic methods. From every patient, five blood samples were taken at 0.5, 1, 2, 3, and 4 hours after witnessed ingestion of antituberculosis agents. The maximum plasma concentration (C_max) and the time to reach the C_max (T_max) for each drug were determined directly from the concentration-time profile. Area under the curve (AUC) was calculated from isoniazid and rifampicin only. The presence of diabetes mellitus did not significantly affect any pharmacokinetic parameters of the three agents. AUC_0-24h of isoniazid was significantly higher in female patients. The AUC_0-24h of rifampicin was significantly correlated with patients’ age. Weight-adjusted dose of each drug positively and significantly correlated with the corresponding drug C_max.