Effects of cardiac output on disposition kinetics of sorbitol: recirculatory modelling.

1. The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of cardiac output on distribution and elimination kinetics of the marker compound sorbitol. 2. The disposition kinetics of sorbitol were investigated after rapid intravenous injection and arterial sampling in nine patients who had undergone cardiac catheterization whereby the cardiac output was measured. 3. A minimal circulatory model consisting of pulmonary and systemic subsystems, both of which were characterized by an inverse Gaussian transit time density function, fitted the data very well. The method involves numerical inverse Laplace transform of the model equations. 4. The mixing clearance introduced as a novel non-compartmental parameter of distribution dynamics was significantly correlated with cardiac output. The steady-state volume of 14 l matched the extracellular volume. The systemic extraction ratio of 23% may reflect the fractional liver blood flow. 5. This pharmacokinetic model can be applied when an independent observation of cardiac output is available. In contrast to the conventional compartmental (or sum of exponential) approach it contains fewer adjustable parameters which can be more readily interpreted in physiological terms.