Pharmacokinetics in clinical practice. I. Concepts.

Important concepts of pharmacokinetics, such as the biologic half-life, clearance, and bioavailability of drugs, can be utilized to describe and predict the time course of drug concentrations in plasma as a function of dose and frequency of drug administration. In quantitative terms, they can serve to characterize the individuality of the patient, including the effects of disease, with respect to drug absorption, distribution, excretion, and metabolism.