Tetracycline absorption in malnutrition.

Tetracycline absorption was studied in a group of normal healthy subjects and in adult male patients suffering from various nutritional disorders such as protein-calorie malnutrition, pellagra, anaemia, and vitamin B-complex deficiency. Tetracycline hydrochloride in doses of 10 mg/kg body weight was administered in a crossover design by oral and intravenous routes at an interval of one week. Absorption of tetracycline was determined from total 48-hour urinary excretion of the drug following each dose. It was observed that tetracycline absorption was significantly reduced in subjects with undernutrition and pellagra but not in patients with orolingual lesions due to vitamin B-complex deficiency and in patients with severe anaemia. Comparative studies on absorption of tetracycline, given in the form of capsule and solution, indicated that impaired absorption of tetracycline in undernourished subjects was not due to inadequate dissolution of the capsule.