Physiology, Zero and First Order Kinetics

Excerpt

As the human body ingests substances and medications, it utilizes a variety of metabolism and elimination processes. The second focus of this topic is zero and first-order kinetic elimination, which is clinically useful in achieving a therapeutic level of medication and prognostically assessing toxicity levels and implementing treatment. For simplicity, the following discussion is specific to a one-compartment model, which views the human body as a homogeneous unit. Lastly, while most drugs undergo elimination via first-order kinetics, a firm understanding of both zero and first-order kinetics is crucial in a clinical setting, as there can be fluidity between the 2 types of elimination with the same specific substance (see Graph. Zero- and First-Order Elimination and Equations).