Exam I: Therapeutic Classification Flashcards
Why are drugs put into Chemical classes (categorized)?
- Structural similarities and moiety (common structural groups)
- Usually similar mechanisms of action
Examples of the potentially different properties of the drug due to structural differences? (7)
- Bioavailability
- Pharmacokinetics: Onset of action
- Duration of activity: The ADR profiles, how long it lasts
- The potency on a weight normalized bases (mg/kg dose)
- Solubility
- Chemical stability
- Patient adherence (palatability)
Benzodiazepines
Central nervous system (CNS) depression and that are most commonly used to treat insomnia and anxiety
Thiazolidinediones
Mostly used to treat type II diabetes
Beta-Lactams
Class of antibiotics
Corticosteroids
Powerful anti-inflammatory drugs, also used for immunosuppressive properties
Aminoglycosides
Antibiotics (differ from beta-lactams), concentration dependent antibiotics that generally kill gram negative organisms
Bisphosphonates
Prevent the loss of bone density, used to treat osteoporosis and similar diseases
Tetracyclines
Antibiotics that may be used to treat infections caused by susceptible microorganisms such as gram positive and gram-negative bacteria, chlamydia, mycoplasma, protozoans, or rickettsia
Proteins (Biotech drug class)
Use biotechnology as a means for manufacturing, which involves the manipulation of microorganisms, such as bacteria, or biological substances, like enzymes, to perform a specific process.
Sulfonamides
Synthetic antibiotic, sulfa drugs
Consoles
Calcium channel blocker, prescribed for high blood pressure and chest pain.
It widens blood vessels and improves blood flow by not making the heart pump harder. It widens blood vessels and improves blood flow
Opioids drug class
Contain chemicals that relax the body and can relieve pain.
Thiazides
Type of diuretic (a drug that increases urine flow).
They act directly on the kidneys and promote diuresis (urine flow) by inhibiting the sodium/chloride cotransporter located in the distal convoluted tubule of a nephron (the functional unit of a kidney).
Barbiturates
Any of a class of sedative and sleep-inducing drugs derived from barbituric acid
Sulfonylureas (ex. glimepiride)
Used to treat type II diabetes by increasing the release of insulin from the pancreas
Monoclonal Antibodies (Biologicals)
Laboratory-produced molecules engineered to serve as substitute antibodies that can restore, enhance, or mimic the immune system’s attack on cancer cells.
Bind to antigens that are generally more numerous on the surface of cancer cells
Thienopyridines (ex. Clopidogrel (Plavix))
Act as a P2Y12 receptor blocker resulting in the inhibition of platelet aggregation
Statins
HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors, are a class of lipid-lowering medications that lower cholesterol levels in the blood to help prevent stroke or heart attack
Why are drugs put into Pharmacological classes?
Have the same pharmacological mode of action
In what ways can drugs in a pharmacological group be the same in relation to their pharmacological mode of action? (Give an example for each)
- Anatomical – CNS drugs, referring to how or where they work a part of the anatomy
- Physiological – CNS depressant, the function is due to the anatomical structure
- Biochemical – Enzyme inducer or inhibitor, how the drug affects an enzyme of the body
- Genetic – Altering the expression of a gene, transfer of genetic material to proteins that can lead to protein synthesis
ACE inhibitors
Relax your veins and arteries to lower your blood pressure by preventing an enzyme in your body from producing angiotensin II, a substance that narrows your blood vessels.
Beta Blockers
Reduce your blood pressure by blocking the effects of the hormone epinephrine, also known as adrenaline.
Beta blockers cause your heart to beat more slowly and with less force, which lowers blood pressure.
Proton Pump Inhibitors
Profound and prolonged reduction of stomach acid production.
Histamine Receptor Antagonists
(H2 blockers) reduce the amount of acid produced by the cells in the lining of the stomach.
Vitamin K Antagonists
Reduce blood clotting by reducing the action of vitamin K
Direct Factor Xa Inhibitors
Direct Thrombin Inhibitors:
Oral agents, have been developed as alternatives to warfarin.
Neuromuscular blocking agents
Drugs that interrupt transmission of nerve impulses at the skeletal neuromuscular junction.
Prevent acetylcholine from triggering the muscle contraction and they are used as anesthesia adjuvants, as relaxants during electroshock, in convulsive states, etc
HMG CoA Reductase Inhibitors
Block an enzyme called HMG-CoA reductase that is involved in the synthesis of mevalonate, a naturally occurring substance that is then used by the body to make sterols, including cholesterol.
PCSK9 Inhibitors
Lower LDL, or “bad,” cholesterol
Angiotensin Receptor Blockers
Medicines that dilate (widen) blood vessels, and are used in the treatment of conditions such as high blood pressure (hypertension), heart failure, or kidney disease in people with diabetes.
How are drugs grouped within Therapeutic classes?
Therapeutic Class is based on the FDA’s approved indications for the majority of drugs in the class
Do not reflect off label uses
Local Anesthetics
Creates an absence of pain in a specific location of the body without a loss of consciousness, as opposed to a general anesthetic
Systemic Anti-infectives
Inhibiting the spread of an infectious organism or by killing the infectious organism outright – anything from antimicrobials to antifungals