Chapter 2: Pharmacologic Priniciples

Question 1

Drug

Answer 1

Any chemical that affects the
physiologic processes of a living organism.

Question 2

Pharmacology

Answer 2

Study or science of drugs.
Encompasses a variety of topics

Question 3

Drug Names

Answer 3

Chemical name
* Describes the drug’s chemical composition and molecular structure

Generic name (nonproprietary name)
* Name given by the United States Adopted Names Council
* Always lowercase
* Must know (NCLEX)

Trade name (proprietary name)
* The drug has a registered trademark; use of the name is restricted by the drug’s patent owner (usually the manufacturer).

Question 4

Drug Classification

Answer 4

Drug classifications
* Structure (ex. beta blocker)
* Subclass (ex. selective, nonselective)
* Therapeutic use (ex. antibiotic)
* Subclass (ex. penicillins)
Prototypical drugs: first drug in a class of drugs

Question 5

Routes of Administration:
Enteral Route

Answer 5

The drug is absorbed into the systemic circulation through the oral or gastric mucosa or the small intestine.
* Oral
* Sublingual
* Buccal
* Recta

Question 6

Routes of Administration:
Topicals

Answer 6

Skin (including transdermal patches)
* Eyes
* Ears
* Nose
* Lungs (inhalation)

Question 7

Routes of Administration:
Parental Route

Answer 7

Intravenous (fastest delivery into the blood circulation)
* Intramuscular
* Subcutaneous
* Intradermal
* Intraarterial
* Intrathecal
* Intraarticular

Question 8

Pharmacokinetics: Absorption

Answer 8

Movement of drug to bloodstream.
Main site of absorption is GI.

Factors affecting absorption: weight, age, route of medication, pH of GI

first pass effect:
large proportion of a drug is chemically changed into inactive metabolites by the liver.

Question 9

Pharmacokinetics: Distribution

Answer 9

Transport of a drug by the bloodstream to its site of action.
Albumin is the most common blood protein and carries the majority of protein -bound drug molecules.

Question 10

Pharmacokinetics: Metabolism

Answer 10

Also referred to as “biotransformation”

It is the breakdown of a drug.

Main site is the liver.

Question 11

Pharmacokinetics: Excretion

Answer 11

• Elimination of drugs from the body

Main site of elimination is Kidney

Question 12

Half-life

Answer 12

Half-life: time required for half (50%) of a given drug to be removed from the body
* Measures the rate at which the drug is eliminated from the body
* After approximately five half-lives, most drugs are considered to be
effectively removed from the body.
* Steady state
* Physiologic state in which the amount of drug removed via elimination is equal to amount of drug absorbed with each dose.

Question 13

Pharmacodynamics

Answer 13

• The study of what the drug does to the body
• The mechanism of drug actions in living tissues
• Therapeutic effect
• Drug–receptor relationships
• Enzymes
• Nonselective Interactions

Question 14

Pharmacotherapeutics

Answer 14

• The clinical use of drugs to prevent and treat diseases
• Defines principles of drug actions—the cellular processes that change in response to the presence of drug molecules
• Drugs are organized into pharmacologic classes.
• Drug interactions
• Additive effects (1 + 1 = 2)
• Synergistic effects (1 + 1 > 2)
• Antagonistic effects (1 + 1 < 2)
• Incompatibility

Question 15

Tolerance

Answer 15

decreasing response to repeated drug doses

Question 16

Dependence

Answer 16

physiologic or psychological need for a drug

Question 17

Physical dependence

Answer 17

physiologic need for a drug to avoid physical withdrawal symptoms

Question 18

Psychological dependence

Answer 18

also known as addiction and is the
obsessive desire for the euphoric effects of a drug

Question 19

Adverse drug event (ADE)

Answer 19

Injuries resulting from unnecessary medication use. Such as polypharmacy (taking too much meds).

Question 20

Adverse drug reactions

Answer 20

• Pharmacologic reaction
• Hypersensitivity (allergic) reaction
• Idiosyncratic reaction
• Drug interaction

Question 21

Four main sources for drugs

Answer 21

• Plants
• Animals
• Minerals
• Laboratory synthesis

Question 22

Toxicology

Answer 22

Science of adverse effects of chemicals on living organisms.

Question 23

Define Pharmacokinetics

Answer 23

the study of what the body does to the drug ( absorption, distribution, metabolism and excretion).

Question 24

Peak level vs Trough level

Answer 24

Peak level is the highest therapeutic level.
Trough level is the lowest blood level of a drug

Question 25

Partial agonist

Answer 25

Drugs that act on receptors but have partial effects on them.

Question 26

Idiosyncratic drug reaction

Answer 26

Drug reaction that occurs rarely and unpredictable

Question 27

Idiosyncratic drug reaction

Answer 27

Drug reaction that occurs rarely and unpredictable