What happens during a pharmacokinetics (PK) study. The video can be used to help young people to decide whether to take part in a studies across different disease areas.
PK studies look at how medicines move in, through and out of the body. Researchers carry out these studies to find out how much, how often and for how long person needs to take a particular medicine for it to safely do its job.
The animation follows a young PK study participant over one full day at a clinic, where they are given a dose of a medicine. Clinical staff take occasional blood tests to look at how much of the medicine was in the body at different times. Researchers then compare many participants’ blood samples to work out the best amount of medicine to give patients around the world.
The MRC Clinical Trials Unit at UCL, Penta, Radboud University Medical Center and ForMed Films produced the three-minute animation in collaboration with Penta’s Youth Trials Boards in South Africa, Uganda, Zimbabwe and the UK. Young people from these countries also feature as narrators in Lugandan, IsiZulu and English.
www.formedfilms.co.uk
00:00. What is ‘Pharmacokinetics’
00:40. Why scientists need your help
00.55. A PK day
01:09. A few tests
01:15. One needle and a little plug
01:35. Take your medicine
01.45. Rest, eat, play games, read
02:05. Sleep
02.11. 24 hours later
02:24. You go home
02:28. Your blood tests are analysed
02:42. People around the world get the right medicine
03:10. Credits