On the distribution and elimination of haloperidol in cholecystectomized patients.

A single oral dose of haloperidol was given to 19 patients prior to cholecystectomy. The concentration of haloperidol was assessed in serum, urine, fatty tissue, liver tissue, choledochal bile and bile bladder contents. The biological half-life of the drug in the serum was 25.1 +/- 12.9 hours, which is comparable to that in healthy volunteers. Only minute amounts of the drug were excreted with the urine. The drug concentration was only slightly elevated in choledochal bile but in the bile bladder contents it was about 11 times higher than that in the serum. The low concentration of haloperidol in the bile indicated that there was no substantial enterohepatic recirculation of the drug in this patient material. The concentration of haloperidol in fatty tissue was about 20 times, and in liver tissue 900 times higher than that in the serum. The corresponding figures for intramuscular administration of haloperidol were 10 and 325, respectively. A possible relationship between the side-effects and the route of administration is discussed.