Article date: October 1981
By: AJ Cummings, AG Whitelaw, in Volume 12, Issue 4, pages 511-515
1 An investigation has been made of the excretion of alpha‐methyldopa, alpha‐methyldopa sulphate, lorazepam and lorazepam glucuronide in the urine of neonates. 2 The rate of elimination of both the drugs in the newborn is slow compared with the adult rate, and apparent half‐life being 3 to 4 times longer than the reported adult values. 3 The newborn appear able to readily metabolise alpha‐methyldopa to alpha‐methyldopa sulphate and to slowly conjugate lorazepam with glucuronic acid. alpha‐ Methyldopa tends to be conjugated to a greater extent and lorazepam to about the same or slightly lesser extent in the newborn than in adults. 4 It is postulated that elimination in the neonate is mainly controlled by the rate of renal excretion in the case of alpha‐methyldopa and by the rate of conjugation in the case of lorazepam.
DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2125.1981.tb01259.x
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