Pharmacokinetics of Succinylcholine in Man

The pharmacokinetics of succinylcholine (SCh) 1 or 2 mg/kg was studied in 14 anesthetized patients. Arterial blood concentrations of SCh were measured using a high-performance liquid chromatographic assay. The arterial concentration vs. time data were analyzed by log-linear regression and fitted to an one-compartment model. The pharmacokinetic parameters were (SCh 1, n=8 and 2 mg/kg, n=6): apparent volume of distribution (16.4 ± 14.7 and 5.6 ± 6.8 ml/kg, mean± s.D.), total body clearance (40.5 ± 38.7 and 15.0± 14.8 liter/min), area under the plasma concentration-time curve (124.3± 163.2 and 695.3± 1008.9 min • μ g/ml), and elimination half-life (16.6±4.8 and 11.7±4.5 sec). The rapid disappearance of SCh from the blood may be due to diffusion out of the blood vessel.