Pharmacodynamics Flashcards
Steps of the drug use process
- Assessment
- Select the the optimal regimen for the patient
- Dispense and counsel
- Administration of the drug
- Monitor and follow up the patient
What is medication reconciliation?
- The process of comparing the patient’s medication orders all medications the patient has been taking
- Prescription, over-the-counter, and dietary supplements
What is the purpose of medication reconciliation?
Avoid medication errors
What is the cause of more than 40% of medication errors?
Inadequate medication reconciliation
What is evidence-based pharmacotherapy?
An approach to decision-making that relies on appraisal of scientific evidence and its strength
What is first level evidence-based pharmacotherapy?
Reviews of evidence-based practice guidelines or current textbooks with evidence links
What is second level of evidence -based pharmacotherapy?
Consultation of electronic databases of systematic reviews and/or meta-analyses
What is third level evidence-based pharmacotherapy?
Literature searches using electronic database
What is a medication error (ME)?
Any mistake in the medication process regardless of outcome
What is an adverse drug event (ADE)?
Harm resulting from the use of the medication
- Some ADEs are the result of MEs
- Some ADEs are not the result of MEs (not due to error)
What is an adverse drug reaction (ADR)?
And ADE that is not preventable (not caused by error)
- ADRs represent reactions to a normal pharmacological intervention
- A side effect is not an ADR unless it causes harm
Is the difference between an adverse drug event and an adverse drug reaction? ADE vs ADR
- ADE: Sometimes preventable, sometimes not
- ADR: Not preventable, normal reaction to medication
What are some examples of electronic guidelines for pharmacotherapy?
- UpToDate
- National guideline clearing House
- Medscape
- BMJ clinical evidence
What are some examples of textbooks/reviews available electronically with updates for pharmacotherapy?
- Goodman and Gilman’s pharmacological basis of therapy
- Scientific American medicine online
What are some examples of regular textbooks for pharmacotherapy?
Pharmacotherapy: principles and practice (Chisolm-Burns)
What are the two main operational concepts of pharmacology?
- Pharmacodynamics
2. Pharmacokinetics
What is pharmacodynamics?
- Sites of action for drug at a molecular level
- Attributes of drugs at the sites
- Effects of drugs, through these sites, on normal and relevant pathologic states
“The effect of a drug on the body”
What is pharmacokinetics?
- Absorption: How the body breaks the drug down
- Distribution: How the body brings the drug to different tissues
- Elimination: How the body processes and excretes the drug
“The fate of a drug following its administration”
To what does the “intended” effect of a drug refer?
- “On-target” effects
- Therapeutic use of drug
To what does the “adverse” effect of a drug refer?
- “On-“ or “off-target” effects
- Lifestyle use of a drug
- Either licit or illicit
- Licit: Caffeine to help stay awake
- Illicit: Opiates for a high instead instead of for pain
What is an “on-target” effect of a drug?
- Effects caused by the drug acting on its intended receptor in the body
- i.e. Antihistamine acting on H1 receptor to reduce itching (intended) or sedation (adverse)
Is an “off-target” effect of a drug?
- Effects caused by the drug acting on UNINTENDED receptor in the body
- i.e. Antihistamine acting on muscarinic receptor causing dehydration and drying (adverse)
What are the 6 major targets of drug action in the body?
- G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs)
- Ion channels
- Enzyme-linked receptors
- Nuclear receptors
- Transporters
- Enzymes
Describe how G protein-coupled receptors work
- A ligand, or agonist, binds to the G protein-coupled receptor embedded in the cell surface membrane
- The receptor undergoes a conformational change
- GDP in the G protein is exchanged for GTP, causing the alpha subunit to disassociate from the beta-gamma dimer
- Both subunits can work on in effector
- Sometimes it’s an activation of the effector, sometimes its inhibition of the effector
What are the proximal targets for G proteins and what are their effects?
- Gs = increase in adenylyl cyclase (increase cAMP)
- Gi = decrease in adenylyl cyclase (decrease cAMP, stimulate potassium channels)
- Gq = increase in PLC-B (increase in calcium)
- G12 = increase in rho (contractility, shape, etc.)
How do prostaglandin’s work on neurons to incite pain?
- Prostaglandins are released from damaged tissue
- Prostaglandins bind with prostanoid receptors to stimulate Gs proteins, or excitatory proteins, and increase cAMP, which is pro-excitatory in a neuron
- The neuron depolarizes and propagates a nerve stimulus along an axon
- This causes the release of neurotransmitters and causes pain