Kroppsdosen

Kroppsdosen is a term used in Norwegian-language pharmacology and toxicology to describe the amount of a chemical that resides in the human body after exposure. The term combines kropp (body) and dosen (dose), signaling a shift from administered or external dose to a body-centered measure of exposure.

In practice, kroppsdosen reflects systemic exposure, accounting for absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion. It is not a single fixed number but a concept that can be estimated through pharmacokinetic modeling, incorporating factors such as bioavailability, time course, and elimination.

Applications of kroppsdosen include risk assessment, regulatory toxicology, and clinical pharmacology, where it helps compare exposures from different routes or products and informs safety margins and dose limits for substances with systemic effects.

Limitations include substantial interindividual variability in metabolism, age, health status, and genetic factors, which can lead to differences in kroppsdosen between people. Uncertainty in bioavailability and model assumptions also reduces precision.

See also: dose, pharmacokinetics, bioavailability, body burden. Further reading includes standard pharmacology and toxicology texts on pharmacokinetics and exposure assessment.