Pharmacokinetics of phenylethylacetylurea (pheneturide), an old antiepileptic drug

The pharmacokinetics of pheneturide (a decarboxylation product of phenobarbital), used to prevent psychomotor seizures for many years, was studied in normal human volunteers. To measure the drug in plasma and urine, a highly sensitive and reproducible thin-layer chromatography-reflectance spectrophotometric assay was developed. The results show that pheneturide follows first-order kinetics in the dose range studied. Its half-life after single doses is 54 hr (range 31--90), and its total body clearance (100% nonrenal) is 2.6 liters/hr (range 1.73--3.59). After repetitive administration, half-life is 40 hr (but clearance remains unchanged because of a lower volume of distribution). Because of the long half-life, repetitive administration results in a continuous steady-state level and makes this drug (kinetically) ideal for long-term use.