Pharmacokinetics-Pharmacodynamics: a Primer for the Clinical Microbiologist

The science of pharmacokinetics-pharmacodynamics (PK-PD) has become critical to clinical decision making and drug development, especially with regard to dose and administration schedule selection and susceptibility breakpoint determination. It is a rapidly growing science, with its roots firmly embedded in laboratory science and branches reaching through regulatory bodies to the patient's bedside. As these concepts form the scientific basis for antimicrobial chemotherapeutics, this brief review will begin by focusing on fundamental PK-PD principles and finish by discussing the application of these concepts for determination of susceptibility testing interpretive criteria.