title: Montelukast dose selection in children ages 2 to 5 years: comparison of population pharmacokinetics between children and adults.
abstract: Montelukast, a leukotriene receptor antagonist, has demonstrated efficacy and tolerability in the treatment of asthma in patients age 6 years and older. The purpose of this open, one-period, multicenter population pharmacokinetic study was to identify a chewable tablet (CT) dose of montelukast for administration to children ages 2 to 5 years with asthma, yielding a single-dose pharmacokinetic profile (area under the plasma concentration-time curve [AUC]) comparable to that of the 10 mg film-coated tablet (FCT) dose in adults. Because patient numbers were small and the volume of blood that could be collected from individual 2- to 5-year-old patients was limited, a population pharmacokinetic approach was used to estimate population AUC (AUCpop). The 4 mg CT dose of montelukast was well tolerated and yielded an AUCpop (2721 ng.h/mL) similar to that of the adult AUCpop (2595 ng.h/mL) observed after a 10 mg FCT dose. These results support the selection of a 4 mg once-daily CT dose of montelukast for future efficacy and safety studies in children ages 2 to 5 years with asthma.
authors.affiliation: Merck Research Laboratories, P.O. Box 2000, RY33-656, Rahway, NJ 07065, USA.
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Knorr
authors.forename: H H
authors.initials: HH
authors.lastname: Nguyen
authors.forename: G L
authors.initials: GL
authors.lastname: Kearns
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Villaran
authors.forename: M L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Boza
authors.forename: T F
authors.initials: TF
authors.lastname: Reiss
authors.forename: J D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Rogers
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Larson
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Spielberg
mesh_terms: D000085:Acetates / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000493:pharmacokinetics* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000328:Adult; D018927:Anti-Asthmatic Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000493:pharmacokinetics / Q000627:therapeutic use; D019540:Area Under Curve; D001249:Asthma / Q000188:drug therapy*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003521:Cyclopropanes; D004304:Dosage Forms; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D020024:Leukotriene Antagonists / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000493:pharmacokinetics / Q000627:therapeutic use; D008297:Male; D011804:Quinolines / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000493:pharmacokinetics* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D013440:Sulfides
chemical_list: D000085:Acetates; D018927:Anti-Asthmatic Agents; D003521:Cyclopropanes; D004304:Dosage Forms; D020024:Leukotriene Antagonists; D011804:Quinolines; D013440:Sulfides; C093875:montelukast