Ethnic differences in disposition of antipyrine and acetaminophen between Tibetan and Han healthy volunteers.

The differences in disposition of antipyrine and acetaminophen between Tibetan and Han healthy volunteers were studied in a randomized crossover design. The half-life of antipyrine was found to be 18.8 +/- 4.89 h in 16 Han and 15.0 +/- 3.02 h in 17 Tibetan (P < 0.05) and the clearance was 1.35 +/- 0.37 L.h-1 in Han and 1.71 +/- 0.44 L.h-1 in Tibetan (P < 0.05). The half-life of acetaminophen was 3.1 +/- 0.86 h in Han and 3.2 +/- 1.12 h in Tibetan (P > 0.05). The experimental results indicate that the disposition of antipyrine between Tibetan and Han healthy volunteers significantly differed, the clearance of antipyrine in Tibetan increased by 20%, but the disposition of acetaminophen between the two ethnic groups showed no difference.