Serum and Saliva Concentrations of Venlafaxine, O-Desmethylvenlafaxine, Quetiapine, and Citalopram in Psychiatric Patients

Background: Therapeutic drug monitoring has become increasingly important in psychiatric therapy. However, it is not yet implemented as a daily routine in clinical settings. To evaluate new, noninvasive procedures, we compared blood and saliva venlafaxine, quetiapine, and citalopram concentrations in samples collected from psychiatric patients. Methods: We collected blood and saliva samples from 75 psychiatric patients (39 venlafaxine, 19 quetiapine, and 17 citalopram). Saliva sampling was achieved by the use of cotton pads. Venlafaxine (and its metabolite O-desmethylvenlafaxine) and quetiapine were analyzed by LC-MS/MS, whereas citalopram was analyzed by HPLC. Results: We observed significant correlations between concentrations of venlafaxine (ratio saliva/serum ± SD: 18.3 ± 9.5, P
Source: Therapeutic Drug Monitoring - Category: Drugs & Pharmacology Tags: Original Article Source Type: research