Unit 1 Flashcards
Define Therapeutic Window.
The difference in plasma concentration [Cp] between the desired and adverse
response MEC
Define Steady State
When the rate of drug administration [RATE IN] equals the rate of drug elimination [RATE OUT]
Pharmacodynamics
What the drug does to the body
Define Bioavailability
The fraction of unchanged drug reaching the systemic circulation following administration by
any route.
AKA transfer of drug from site of adminstration –> blood
What is volume distribution?
The drug dose needed for desired plasma concentration
Define distribution
movement of drug from blood stream into tissue
What is the major organism for metabolism?
The liver
What is the major organism for excretion?
The kidney
Four factors influencing drug membrane passage
- Molecular size - can be affected by drug binding to plasma proteins
- Lipid solubility - estimated by oil:water partition coefficient
- Degree of ionization - affected by tissue pH, will influence lipid solubility
- Concentration gradient - created at site of administration
What size molecules can diffuse through aqueous channels?
100-200 MW
What is the major method of diffusion for drugs with molecular weight 500-800?
lipid diffusion
Formula for bioavailability?
Area under the curve (AUC) via any route (usually oral)
______________________________________
Area under the curve intravenous
What is another term for bioavailability?
Extent of absorption
Two main factors that dictate the plasma concentration?
- Rate (time to peak)
2. Extent (Bioavailability)
What is first pass effect?
When the drug concentration is greatly reduced due to liver metabolism or gastric metabolism
Define rate of absorption
the peak concentration plasma or the time to attain peak plasma concentration
Enteric coating
fatty acids applied to oral medication to protect medication from the stomach.
protects drug from the stomach acidity and can only be broken down in the small intestines (more basic environment)
parenteral route
any drug that is NOT administered via the gastrointestinal tract
A generic drug formulation is said to be bioequivalent to a brand name drug formulation if:
- Rate (estimated by maximum of peak drug concentration [Cmax]) and extent (bioavailability) that the active ingredient drug is absorbed and becomes available at the site of action (drug entering systemic circulation) is similar (within set limits) to the brand name product
- Drugs are considered bioequivalent if the 90% confidence interval of the mean AUC and
the mean Cmax of the generic product (T-test) is within 80-125% of the brand product
What are two main things to considered when choosing drug route adminstration?
bioavailability and relative rate of onset
Example of enteral routes of administration?
Oral and rectal
Is the rate of absorption higher in the stomach or the small intestines?
Small intestines because it has larger surface area!
Benefits of using IV drugs?
most accurate and rapid onset (
How would you administer a drug that has a limited therapeutic window?
Use an IV
Cons of using IV
bypasses absorption barriers and can introduce infectious agents
easy to reach toxic levels very quickly
Bioavailability of intramuscular injection?
100%
What is a depot intramuscular injection?
an intramuscular injection of a drug in an oil suspension that results in a gradual release of the medication over several days.
When to use intramuscular injection?
What drug is too irritating for subcutaneous injection
Why wouldn’t you use intramuscular injection?
absorption can be erratic
pain
tissue necrosis (if high pH)
microbial contamination
When to use a subcutaneous drug?
For slower, constant rate absorption
period of drug absorption can be altered intentionally
How would you adminster a non-irritating drug?
subcutaneously
When would you administer a drug via inhalation?
For rapid onset of systemic drug effects (general anesthetics, nicotine, “crack” cocaine,
marijuana)
Why are inhaled drugs absorbed so quickly?
Due to large surface area and high blood flow in pulmonary tissue
What is a transdermal drug?
Application of patch to skin for treatment of systemic conditions (e.g., hypertension, angina, pain, hormonal
replacement therapy, smoking cessation)
Benefit of using a transdermal drug?
Bypasses the first pass effect
Cons of transdermal drug?
Prolonged drug levels can be achieved - potential for unexpected drug accumulation and toxicity
What are two things to look for if an anemic patient has an appropriate reticulocyte response?
Hemolysis and hemorrhaging
ideal particle size for local inhalation?
1-5 micromolarity has therapeutic effect
what are some risks associated with local inhalation of aerosolized particles?
Irritant drug may induce bronchospasm (aerosolized liquid/solid particles remain in suspension)
What are some risks associated with local topical drugs?
Generally minimal systemic absorption, but can be significant under some conditions, e.g., application over
large area, to denuded area, use of occlusive dressings, or with highly lipid soluble drugs.
Is rectal drug onset rapid or not rapid?
onset is not rapid
How does the bioavailability for rectal drugs compare to oral drugs?
bioavailability for rectal drugs are generally greater than oral administration
compare the first pass metabolism between rectal and oral drugs
First pass metabolism for the rectal route is less than for the oral route. 50% of rectal drugs bypass the liver
Describe the onset and bioavailability for Sublingual - Buccal drug
onset is within minutes and bioavailability generally high
Describe Sublingual - Buccal drugs ability to bypass the liver
After absorption from oral mucosa, venous drainage from mouth is to the superior vena cava, protecting the drug
from rapid hepatic first pass metabolism plus faster onset of action
How would you administer a drug that is needed for rapid systemic onset?
inhalation
How would you administer a drug needed to treat a systemic CONDITION?
transdermal patch to treat hypertension, angina, pain, hormonal replacement therapy, smoking cessation - 1st pass metabolism is avoided
Name four important tissues with tight junctions between cells
- GI mucosa
- Blood-brain barrier
- Placental
- Renal tubes
How do you tell the difference between the dissociation of a proton of an acid vs base?
dissociation of a proton from an acid produces an ionized drug (COO-), whereas dissociation of a proton from a base produces an unionized drug (NH2)
Are nonionized or ionized drugs more readily absorbed?
non-ionized
Define pka
refers to the pH of a solution at which the concentrations of the protonated and nonprotonated
forms of the drug are equal (and is a constant for any given drug)
At what pH are weak acids ionized?
alkaline solutions
ph > pka
Is the deprotonated form of an acid ionized or unionized?
ionized COO-
Is the deprotonated form of a based ionized or unionized?
unionized B
At what pH are weak acids unionized?
acidic solutions
pH
At equilibrium, the unionized concentration on both sides of the membrane is..
equal
At equilibrium, where is the total concentration of drug greatest?
The side where ionization is greatest because drugs are trapped where they are predominantly ionized
What type of solution traps acidic drugs?
basic solutions
What type of solution traps basic drugs?
acidic solutions
What type of pores can ionized drug molecules pass through?
capillary wall pores
What protein do acidic drugs primarily bind to?
albumin
What protein do basic drugs primarily bind to?
alpha-1 acid glycoprotein
Define Volume of Distribution
Size of compartment necessary to account for total amount of drug in the body if it were present
throughout body at same concentration found in plasma.
gives an indication of the extent to which a drug
passes from plasma to extravascular tissue
Formula for the volume of distribution
Vd = amount of drug in body (Ab) /
concentration of drug in plasma (C0)
What is a higher volume of distribution indicative of?
indicative of drugs located mostly outside plasma (increased tissue binding, high lipid solubility)
What is a lower volume of distribution indicative of?
Lower values are generally indicative of drugs located mostly inside plasma or ECF (extensive binding to plasma proteins, large size, or low lipid solubility)
What is the bioavailability for intravenous drugs?
100% since all the dose is placed in the blood
What drugs fall within 75-100% availability, approaching 100%?
intramusculuar, subcutaneous, sublingual-buccal, inhalation, transdermal
because tissue environment is non-destructive for most drugs
What drug has the most variability when it comes to bioavailability?
oral.. can be anywhere from 0-100% due to passage through the GI tract or 1st pass effect metabolic effect
What is the most rapid onset drug?
inhalation and intravenous
Which one probably has a faster onset: inhalation or intravenous drugs?
inhalation drugs getting to the central nervous system
Which drug route is potentially more dangerous: inhalation or intravenous?
intravenous because you can put an unlimited number of molecules in the plasma compartment
Name drugs that have an intermediate speed of onset
sublingual-buccal, intramuscular, subcutaneous
Name drugs that have a slower speed of onset 15-30 min
oral- intermediate release formulations
Name drugs that have the slowest speed of onset (hours)
Transdermal and oral - enteric coated and sustained release formulas
intramuscular and subcutaneous also have depot forms
An increase in gastric motility generally has what effect on the rate of oral absorption?
increases the rate of oral absorption
An increase in gastric motility has what effect on the extent of bioavailability?
no change in the extent of bioavailability
Is transdermal route of administration for local or systemic effects?
Treatment of SYSTEMIC CONDITIONS
What are the four factors influencing drug distribution?
- Special anatomic barriers - tight junctions
- pH of biologic fluids
- Lipid solubility of non-ionized drugs
- Drug binding to plasma protein
True or False: Drugs can cross the blood-brain barrier through specific transporters?
TRUE
What type of drugs can readily cross the blood-brain barrier?
Lipid soluble drugs
When will a weak acid most readily cross membranes?
When it is contained in acidic fluids!
so long as there is an unionized form of drug, what site will the drug be best absorbed?
always the intestines!
surface area always trumps percent unionized as long as there is an unionized form
How to treat aspirin overdose?
Alkalize the urine with sodium bicarbonate so the aspirin (weak acid) gets trapped into the basic solution for excretion
What effect does protein binding have on drug half life?
Increases it
another way to describe small volume of distribution?
most of the drug hangs out in the plasma
How to avoid bolus toxicity while giving a drug via IV?
administer via slow IV push
“Bolus” or “slug” effects are most likely to be seen when drugs are administered by which of the following routes?
intravenous
Explain what C0 is..
extrapolation to time zero gives C0, the hypothetical drug concentration predicted if the distribution had been achieved instantly.
Must connect the line linearly to give time for the drug to distribute! If you take the highest concentration plotted on the graph, you haven’t allowed enough time for the drug to distribute throughout the body.
Drugs highly bound to plasma proteins?
Heparin (4L)
Warfarin (10L)
Drugs that freely enter cells (small molecules)
Lithium (46L)
Ethanol (42L)
Drugs highly water soluble that don’t enter cells?
Ibuprofen (11L)
Gentamicin (22L)
What is the expected volume of distribution for a drug that is highly bound to plasma proteins
3-5 Liters
How does the alcohol concenctration differ in someone who is obese?
An obese person has a higher fat %, lower volume of distribution of alcohol (need aqueous solution), and alcohol percentage INCREASES
aka fat people get drunk faster
What is the primary organ for drug metabolism?
The liver
What is the most frequent pathway for drug metabolism?
oxidation