Bioavailability of fluoride administered as sodium fluoride or monofluorophosphate to humans

A double-bind cross-over study was conducted on four healthy subjects, aged 19-29 years, in order to determine the relative bioavailability and other pharmacokinetics features of fluoride (F) after single oral administration in fasting conditions of 2 mg F as sodium F (NaF) or sodium monofluorophosphate (MFP). The bioavailability was evaluated on the basis of the plasma levels and of the urinary excretion of F. Blood was sampled before and during the 8 h after the administration of the test solutions. For F excretion urine was sampled 12 h before the study and over the 8 h after the administration. Data were tested for statistically significant differences by ANOVA and Tukey's post hoc tests, and also by Student's t-test (p < 0.05). For the two formulations, the pharmacokinetics of F in plasma was characterized by a rapid absorption and by a peak (C_max = 0.1 μg/mL) which was reached 20 min after administration, followed by a biphasic elimination. In the 8 h following the administration the urinary excretion of F accounted for 35-41% of the administered dose, without significant differences between the two formulations. The AUCs (±S.D.) for NaF and MFP were 21.15 (±0.58) and 19.04 (±1.75) min μg mL⁻¹, respectively, and were not significantly different (p = 0.079). Based on the AUC and C_max of F in plasma and on the urinary excretion of F during the 8 h following administration, the relative bioavailabilities of the two F formulations were equivalent.