Effect of age on the absorption of anticholinergic medications
Changes experienced by the aging body are another potential contributor to changes in drug pharmacokinetics. Studies with a primary objective of identifying age-related differences in drug pharmacokinetics are listed in table 3. Gastric and colonic transit is significantly faster in postmenopausal women in comparison to premenopausal women33 which alters absorption. In a study of 16 healthy adults average age 81 years and 16 healthy adults average age 24 years, advanced age did not influence gastric emptying or small intestinal transit but that older individuals had a slower colonic transit29.