chapter 14 (prescription, otc drugs, & natural health products)

Question 1

prescription drugs

Answer 1

medicinal drugs available to the public only when approved by a medical professional and dispensed by a licensed pharmacist.

Question 2

over-the-counter (OTC) drugs

Answer 2

medicinal drugs available to the public without the requirement of a prescription. aka nonprescription drugs.

Question 3

natural health products

Answer 3

vitamin or mineral supplements, or herbal products, often marketed to have some sort of health benefit.

Question 4

dietary supplements

Answer 4

products (other than tobacco) distributed with the intention of supplementing the diet, that contain a vitamin, mineral, amino acid, herb or other botanical product, enzyme, organ tissue, metabolites, or any combination of these substances.

Question 5

research ethics board

Answer 5

institutional committee that reviews all requests for clinical trials. it analyzes each proposal for ethical issues, appropriate informed consent documents, conflicts of interest, and financial agreements.

Question 6

phase 1 trials

Answer 6

first stage of clinical testing, in which an experimental drug is administered to healthy volunteers to check for possible side effects and determine patterns of absorption and elimination. often most risky phase because it is being administered to humans for the first time. ~10-100 healthy volunteers.

Question 7

phase 2 trials

Answer 7

second stage of clinical testing, in which an experimental drug is given to a small population of patients who have the medical condition for which the drug is considered a possible treatment. ~100-500 people. double-blind.

Question 8

phase 3 trials

Answer 8

third stage of clinical testing, in which an experimental drug is given to a large population of patients, through which issues of safety, effectiveness, and proper dosage levels are finalized. ~1000-3000 people. long and expensive.

Question 9

phase 4 trials

Answer 9

fourth phase of clinical testing, in which possible adverse reactions to a drug that is already available to the public are monitored by physicians who have prescribed it.

Question 10

bioequivalence

Answer 10

characteristic of two drugs in which all pharmacological, physiological, and therapeutic effects are identical.

Question 11

bioavailability

Answer 11

characteristic of two drugs in which they have an identical rate of entering the bloodstream and reaching the site of action.

Question 12

pharmaceutical equivalent

Answer 12

drug that is identical in therapeutically active ingredients, salt or ester form, route of administration, dosage, and strength. ex. generic form of drug.

Question 13

pharmaceutical alternative

Answer 13

drug that has same active ingredients but differs in salt or ester form, route of administration, dosage, and/or strength.

Question 14

nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID)

Answer 14

any of a group of otc analgesics (aspirin, ibuprofen, naproxen) or prescription analgesics (celebrex) that are unlike cortisone-based drugs but nonetheless reduce pain and swelling caused by injury or disease.

Question 15

salicylic acid

Answer 15

drug developed in the nineteenth century to treat mild to moderate pain; it is extremely irritating to the stomach.

Question 16

acetylsalicylic acid (ASA)

Answer 16

modification of salicylic acid that makes the drug less irritating to the stomach without reducing analgesic powers.

Question 17

aspirin

Answer 17

any analgesic drug containing acetylsalicylic acid acid (ASA).

Question 18

antipyretic

Answer 18

having an effect that reduces body temperature and fever.

Question 19

prostaglandins

Answer 19

hormone-like substances that are blocked by many otc analgesic drugs (ex: aspirin).

Question 20

cyclo-oxygenase (COX) enzymes

Answer 20

a family of enzymes that normally synthesize prostaglandins. blocked irreversibly by aspirin and irreversibly by ibuprofen.

Question 21

reye’s syndrome

Answer 21

rare but very dangerous childhood disorder that has been associated with the administration of ASA-type analgesic drugs for the treatment of certain viral infections. shouldn’t give aspirin to anyone under 20 years.

Question 22

acetaminophen

Answer 22

type of otc analgesic drug. tylenol. likely inhibits COX-3 enzymes.

Question 23

ibuprofen

Answer 23

type of otc analgesic drug. major brand names include advil and motrin.

Question 24

naproxen

Answer 24

analgesic drug, formerly available only by prescription. band names: naprosyn, anaprox. available otc as aleve.

Question 25

diphenhydramine

Answer 25

one of two active ingredients approved by health canada in otc sleep-aid products, such as nytol. antihistamine.

Question 26

doxylamine succinate

Answer 26

one of two active ingredients approved by health canada in otc sleep-aid products, such as unisom. antihistamine.