The postabsorptive distribution of cimetidine is described. Assays by high pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC) of postmortem samples of cerebrospinal fluid, serum, and solid tissues were used to determine pharmacokinetic parameters as well as mean tissue: serum concentration (T:S) ratios in seven patients with renal and liver dysfunction. Correlations were calculated between the T:S ratio and the volume of distribution, and between the T:S concentration ratio and the time of sampling after death. The highest T:S ratios occurred in the eliminating organs, the liver and kidneys, and the lowest in fat. As the time of autopsy increased after death, the T:S ratios decreased.