Elevated plasma nilvadipine concentration after single and chronic oral administration to patients with chronic liver disease.

Fourteen normotensive patients with liver disease (6 with cirrhosis and 8 with chronic hepatitis) and 7 healthy volunteers were given a single oral dose of nilvadipine 2 mg. In addition, nilvadipine 4 mg was administered orally twice daily for several months to 6 hypertensive patients with mild liver dysfunction and 18 hypertensives with normal liver function. A significant increase in plasma nilvadipine was found in the patients with cirrhosis as compared both to the normal and chronic hepatitis subjects; the time to peak concentration was similar among the three groups. The peak plasma nilvadipine concentration was closely correlated both with the serum albumin level and the retention of indocyanine green. Changes in blood pressure, pulse rate and various vasoactive hormones following a single oral dose of nilvadipine did not differ between the groups. Thus, an increase in plasma nilvadipine relative to the level in normal subjects was demonstrated in patients with cirrhosis following a single oral dose, as well as in patients with slight liver dysfunction following long-term oral administration.