A pharmacokinetic study to evaluate the profile of droxicam in elderly healthy volunteers after a single oral dose of 20mg.

A single oral dose pharmacokinetic study in a group of 10 elderly healthy volunteers was performed to evaluate the pharmacokinetic profile and the potential effect of age on the absorption, distribution and elimination of droxicam. After complete medical screening, and informed written consent, one dose (20mg) of droxicam was administered to all volunteers, under medical supervision. A complete pharmacokinetic profile of the obtained blood plasma levels was evaluated over 120 hours. All volunteers completed the study and in none did droxicam cause intolerance or side effects. The results showed that droxicam absorption, distribution and elimination did not differ substantially from reference studies done with young healthy volunteers. The peak mean plasma concentration was at 10 hours 1.38 +/- 0.29 microgram/ml, declining slowly, reaching 0.24 +/- 0.20 microgram/ml at 120 hours, with a half life of 50.23 +/- 17.19 hours and an elimination rate constant of 0.015 +/- 0.005 microgram/ml.h-1. In comparison to the healthy, young volunteers, the variation was minimal. It can be concluded from this study that age causes minimal variations in the absorption and distribution of droxicam.