We evaluated the absolute bioavailability of ciprofloxacin, a new quinoline carboxylic acid, in 12 healthy male volunteers. Doses of 200 mg were given to each of the volunteers in a randomized, crossover manner 1 week apart orally and as a 10-min intravenous infusion. Half-lives (mean +/- standard deviation) for the intravenous and oral administration arms were 4.2 +/- 0.77 and 4.11 +/- 0.74 h, respectively. The serum clearance rate averaged 28.5 +/- 4.7 liters/h per 1.73 m2 for the intravenous administration arm. The renal clearance rate accounted for approximately 60% of the corresponding serum clearance rate and was 16.9 +/- 3.0 liters/h per 1.73 m2 for the intravenous arm and 17.0 +/- 2.86 liters/h per 1.73 m2 for the oral administration arm. Absorption was rapid, with peak concentrations in serum occurring at 0.71 +/- 0.15 h. Bioavailability, defined as the ratio of the area under the curve from 0 h to infinity for the oral to the intravenous dose, was 69 +/- 7%. We conclude that ciprofloxacin is rapidly absorbed and reliably bioavailable in these healthy volunteers. Further studies with ciprofloxacin should be undertaken in target patient populations under actual clinical circumstances.