Pharmacokinetics of tobramycin in patients with stable renal impairment, patients undergoing peritoneal dialysis, and patients on chronic hemodialysis.

The pharmacokinetics of tobramycin were studied in five patients with stable renal impairment, four patients requiring peritoneal dialysis, and four patients on chronic hemodialysis. The half-life of the drug varied with the level of the serum creatinine in the first group of patients, and the average volume of distribution was 15 liters. Only 49% of the administered dose of tobramycin was recovered during 36 h of peritoneal dialysis. The average clearance of tobramycin during hemodialysis was 49.1 ml/min, and 51.5% of the administered dose was recovered during a 6-h dialysis.