A new methodology for comparative bioavailability testing is described in which each drug formulation is compared with a stable isotope-labeled variant of the drug that is consumed orally in solution at the same time the tested formulation is ingested. The methodology is used to determine the comparative bioavailabilities of two commercially available brands of imipramine hydrochloride. The power of the new methodology to detect differences between drug formulations, when, in fact, such differences exist, is shown to be superior to that of conventional bioavailability tests.
Key words bioavailability - confidence intervals - hypothesis testing - imipramine - internal standard - mass spectrometry - power - relative bioavailability
This study was supported by Contract 223-75-3006, DHEW/Public Health Service, Food and Drug Administration, Rockville, Maryland.