B1 Drugs Flashcards
What is a drug?
Substance that affect chemical reactions in the body
How do scientists predict how drugs may behave in humans?
Using tissues and animals as models
Why are drugs extensively tested and trialled in a series of stages?
Safe and effective
What are new drugs extensively tested for?
Toxicity., efficacy and dose
What is used in lab testing?
Cells, tissues + live animals
Describe clinical trials
Involve healthy volunteers + patients
Very low doses given at start
If drugs found to be safe
further clinical trials
optimum dose
What happens in double blind trials?
Some patients given placebo, does not contain the drug
Neither doctors nor patients know
Who has received a placebo/the drug
trial is complete
What is stations useful for?
Lowering risk of heart + circulatory diseases
What was thalidomide first developed as?
Sleeping pill
What was thalidomide found to be effective at first?
Relieving morning sickness in pregnant women
Effect of using thalidomide as a drug “to relieve morning sickness in pregnant women” and why?
Many babies
Born to mothers who took the drugs
Severe limb abnormalities
Thalidomide not tested for use in pregnant women
What happened after the “thalidomide disaster”?
Banned
Drug testing become much more rigorous
Name one disease thalidomide has been used successful in its treatment recently?
Leprosy
Candidates should be aware of the effects of misuse of?
Recreational drugs, alcohol and nicotine
Examples of some illegal recreational drugs
Ecstasy, cannabis and heroine
