Chapter 1 Orientation To Pharmacology Flashcards
Drug
Any chemical that can affect living processes
Pharmacology
The study of drugs and their interactions with living systems
Clinical pharmacology
The study of drugs in humans
Therapeutics
Aka pharmacotherapeutics,
The use of drugs to diagnose, prevent, or treat disease or to prevent pregnancy
The medical use of drugs
What are the big 3 properties of an ideal drug?
Effectiveness, safety, selectivity
What is an effective drug?
One that elicits the responses for which it is given
What is a safe drug?
One that cannot produce harmful effects- even if administered in very high doses and for a very long time
How can the chances of a drug producing harmful effects be reduced?
By proper drug selection and proper dosing
What is a selective drug?
One that elicits only the response for which it is given
* no such thing as a wholly selective drug because all drugs cause side effects
What are the additional properties of an ideal drug?
Reversible action, predictability, ease of administration, freedom from drug interactions, low cost, chemical stability, possession of a simple generic name
Why should an ideal drug be simple to administer?
So the route is convenient and the number of dozes perday is low
What are 3 benefits of edge of administration?
- Convenience
- Enhance patient adherence
- Decrease risk
What kinds of drugs do we want to be reversible and which ones do we not?
Reversible: most drugs, general anesthetics
Not reversible: antibiotics
Why is predictability important in drugs?
To maximize chances of eliciting desired responses
* but accuracy of predictions isn’t guaranteed because each patientis different
Why is freedom from drug interactions a property of an ideal drug?
Taking multiple drugs con cause reactions that promote or inhibit drug responses
