M&R 9.1/9.2 Pharmacokinetics Flashcards
Describe the difference between the pharmaceutical process, the pharmacokinetic process, the pharmacodynamic process, and the therapeutic process
Pharmaceutical process = is the drug getting into the patient
Pharmacokinetic process = is the drug getting to the site of action (what the body does to the drug)
Pharmacodynamic process = is the drug producing the desired effect (what the drug does to the body)
Therapeutic process = is this translated to a therapeutic effect
Which process describes whether the drug is getting into the patient?
The pharmaceutical process
Which process describes whether the drug is getting to the site of action?
The pharmacokinetic process (what the body does to the drug)
Which process describes whether the drug is producing the desired effect?
The pharmacodynamic process (what the drug does to the body)
Which process described whether the desired effect is translated to a therapeutic effect?
Therapeutic process
Describe how properties regarding how patients take drugs can affect the pharmaceutical process (whether the drug gets into the patient)?
Formulation (solid vs liquid, if solid - acid stability, solubility)
Compliance (fewer doses/day - more patient compliance)
Site of administration (focal/systemic, if systemic - enteral/parenteral)
What are some sites of focal drug administration?
Eyes
Skin
Ears
Inhalation
What are 2 advantages of focal drug administration?
Concentrates drug at site of action
Less systemic absorption –> less off target effects/side effects
What are 3 routes of enteral drug administration?
Oral
Sublingual
Rectal
What are 4 routes of parenteral drug administration?
Subcutaneous
Intramuscular
Intravenous
Transdermal
Define ‘oral bioavailability’ of a drug
The proportion of a drug given orally (or by any route other than IV) which reaches the systemic circulation in an unchanged form
In what 2 ways can you measure oral bioavailability of a drug?
- By amount (depends of GI absorption & first pass metabolism) - measure area under curve of a plasma drug level vs time plot (then (AUC oral/ AUC injected) x 100)
- By rate of availability (depends on GI absorption and pharmaceutical factors) - measured by peak height and rate of rise of drug level in blood
Does everyone have the same bioavailability for the same drug?
No!
How do you calculate therapeutic ratio?
LD50/ED50
=maximum tolerated dose/minimum effective dose
What does it mean if there is a large therapeutic window/index?
There is a wider gap between the effective conc of the drug and the toxic conc of the drug
Therefore a mistake in dose is less likely to have a negative effect on the patient
Name a drug with a large therapeutic window
Penicillin
What does it mean if a drug has a small therapeutic window/index?
There is a narrow gap between the effective conc of the drug and the toxic conc
Therefore any mistake in dose can have severe effects
Name a drug with a small therapeutic window
Warfarin
What could we alter to stop a drug entering the toxic window?
The formulation
E.g. if a fast-release formulation causes plasma concentration to rapidly rise and enter the toxic window, then could formulate a slow-release preparation that causes plasma levels to rise slower so the toxic window is not reached
What is first pass metabolism? Why does it happen?
Because blood from the gut goes straight to the liver via the portal system, drugs that are absorbed through the gut can get metabolised by the liver before ever reaching the systemic circulation
(e.g. opiates)
Name 3 routes of administration which would avoid first-pass metabolism
Parenteral routes (e.g. IV, IM, SC)
Sublingual (e.g. use of GTN in angina)
Rectal (rectum has drainage to both portal and systemic systems - so only some of the drug would undergo first-pass metabolism by liver
What is the volume distribution of a drug?
The theoretical volume into which the drug is distributed, assuming that this occurred instantaneously
How would you calculate volume distribution of a drug?
On a time vs serum concentration graph, you would extrapolate back to time zero to find C0 (the hypothetical drug concentration predicted if the distribution had occurred instantly)
Then do: amount given/C0
Do drugs which are bound to plasma proteins exert effects?
No - it is the FREE level of drug that exerts the effect, not the total level