ABSTRACT
Daily administration of 2, 5, 10, 15 and 20mg of fenfluramine/kg body weight to adult rats for four weeks resulted in dose dependent decrease in calcium and phosphorus absorption with an inverse correlation of r = -0.94 for calcium and r = -0.93 for phosphorus. Significant (P less than 0.05) increase in the total faecal lipids and moderate decline in plasma calcium levels were also observed in the rats. Adult rats made obese by dietary methods when treated with 10mg and 15 mg of fenfluramine/kg body weight/day for 10 weeks showed a significant reduction (p less than 0.001) in the intestinal absorption of both calcium and phosphorus. The reduction at 15mg/kg drug dose was 10.7 pc for calcium and 9.5 pc for phosphorus. Analyses of the long bones as well as carcasses of the obese rats showed significant decrease (p less than 0.001) in the content of these minerals. Plasma calcium and phosphorus levels were also significantly (p less than 0.001) reduced in the obese-treated rats. However, fenfluramine treatment significantly reduced the plasma calcium but not the phosphorus levels in the non-obese rats. These studies have demonstrated that chronic administration of fenfluramine (greater than or equal to 10mg/kg body weight) to rats, obese or non-obese, impairs calcium and phosphorus metabolism in the body.
