The objective of this study was to describe the population pharmacokinetic of meropenem in burn patients and to explore the appropriateness of current dosage regimens. Population pharmacokinetic parameters of meropenem in 59 burn patients were estimated using a mixed effect method (NONMEM, ver. 6.2). The final model chosen was a two-compartment model with first-order elimination where creatinine clearance and edema contributed. The mean population pharmacokinetic parameters were as follows: Clearance (L/hr) = 2.89 + 12.8 × CLcr (mL/min)/133, V1 (central volume) = 20 + 10.8 x presence of edema (0 or 1) L, V2 (peripheral volume) = 12 L and Q (intercompartmental clearance) = 3.75 L/hr with interindividual variability (CV%) 29.5, 36.6, 86.2 and 50.0%, respectively. The population clearance and volume of distribution in our burn patients were significantly greater than those reported in unburned patients. In MCMC simulation, the probability of achieving time above MIC greater than 40% of the dosing interval was 57.0% for P. aeruginosa and 18.9% for A. baumannii which were isolated from Korean hospitals.
