D.1 Pharmaceutical products and drug action Flashcards
What is metabolism?
Metabolism involves the functioning of the human body that is the result of thousands of different reactions
What are the different types of damage our bodies can suffer from?
- injury
- genetic abnormalities
- environmental abnormalities
- accumulated changes with age
What are drugs?
Drugs are chemicals that affect how the body works for better or for worse
What are medicines?
Medicines are substances that improve health
What is the therapeutic effect?
The beneficial effect of medicine
What is oral administration and what are examples?
Taken by mouth
Tablets, capsules, pills, liquids
What is inhalation administration and what are examples?
Vapour breathed in/smoking
Medications for asthma, drugs of abuse such as cocaine
What is skin path administration and what are examples?
Absorbed directly into the blood
Oestrogen patches, nicotine
What are suppositories administrations and what are examples?
Inserted into the rectum
Treatment of digestive illnesses and haemorrhoids
What is eye/ear drop administration and what are examples?
Dropped into openings
Eye/ear infections
What are parenteral administration and what are examples?
Intramuscular, intravenous, subcutaneous
Many vaccines, local anaesthetics, dental injections
What is intramuscular?
Into the muscle
What is intravenous?
Into the blood
What is subcutaneous?
Under the skin
What is bioavailability?
Bioavailability is the fraction of the administered dose that reaches the blood stream
Why doesn’t 100% of the administered dose reach the bloodstream?
Because the drug may have been broken down by metabolic processes
What type of drug administration is used for comparison in bioavailability and why?
Intravenous administration because it enters directly into the bloodstream
What are the factors affecting bioavailability?
- Administration of the drug
- The solubility of the drug
- Functional groups on the drug
- The polarity of the drug
Explain how the solubility of a drug affects its bioavailability?
Higher solubility increases bioavailability
How do functional groups affect a drugs solubility?
Acid base groups will determine the charges carried on the drug at different pH values and its reactivity and solubility
What are the best types of drug for crossing the brain blood barrier?
Non polar and lipid soluble drugs
What are polar drugs good at entering?
Polar drugs are good at entering the aqueous environment of the bloodstream
How does oral administration affect a drugs bioavailability?
Oral administration allows enzymes to change the drugs chemical composition
What is tolerance?
Tolerance happens when repeated doses of a drug result in smaller physiological effects
What is addiction?
Addiction happens when the dependency on a drug leads to withdrawal symptoms if it is withheld
What are side effects?
Side effects are effects which are not intended and can vary between drugs
Are side effects beneficial or more adverse?
They can be both
What is the dosage regime?
The dosage regime of a drug is the specific quantity of the drug to be taken at one time and the frequency of administration
What can cause dosages to vary between people?
- Age
- Gender
- Weight
What must calculations for dosage account for?
Bioavailability and side effects
