Unit 4 Pharm Terminology List A

Question 1

The passage of a substance through some surface of the body into body fluids and tissues.

Answer 1

absorption

Question 2

A process which occurs when the rate of drug administration exceeds the rate of drug excretion resulting in the gradual increase in the blood level of the drug.

Answer 2

accumulation

Question 3

Any undesired, unintended, and noxious effect of a drug occurring after doses administered for prophylactic, diagnostic, or therapeutic purposes.

Answer 3

adverse reactions

Question 4

A drug that binds to the receptor and stimulates the receptor’s function.

Answer 4

agonist

Question 5

An acquired, abnormal immune response to a substance (allergen) that does not normally cause a reaction.

Answer 5

allergic response or reaction

Question 6

A life-threatening allergic reaction resulting in difficulty breathing and low blood pressure.

Answer 6

anaphylactic reaction

Question 7

A drug that prevents receptor stimulation.

Answer 7

antagonist, drug

Question 8

A drug interaction which results in a lessened pharmacologic effect.

Answer 8

antagonistic drug interaction

Question 9

The percentage of an administered dose which is absorbed. The rate and extent to which an active drug or metabolite enters the general circulation, permitting access to the site of action.

Answer 9

bioavailability

Question 10

The time required by the body, tissue, or organ to metabolize or inactivate half the amount of a substance taken in.

Answer 10

biological half-life

Question 11

A drug whose distribution is controlled by federal &/ or state government regulation.

Answer 11

controlled substance

Question 12

A situation in which the development of tolerance to one drug creates a tolerance to other drugs with similar pharmacological effects.

Answer 12

cross-tolerance

Question 13

The process by which the drug is transported in body fluids to the various tissues and organs of the body.

Answer 13

distribution

Question 14

Any substance that, when taken into a living organism, may modify one or more of its functions.

Answer 14

drug

Question 15

Inappropriate intake of a substance by amount, type, or situation, continuously or periodically.

Answer 15

drug abuse

Question 16

An interaction between a drug and another drug, or a drug and food, which results in an alteration or modification in the drug’s pharmacological effects.

Answer 16

drug interaction

Question 17

Relationship between the dose of a drug and the intensity of its effect; the more potent a drug is, the smaller the dose required to achieve a certain effect.

Answer 17

drug potency

Question 18

The process by which the body rids itself of waste.

Answer 18

excretion

Question 19

A phenomenon which occurs whereby a drug which has been absorbed by the gastrointestinal system is extensively metabolized by the liver prior to reaching the systemic circulation.

Answer 19

first-pass effects

Question 20

Nonproprietary name of a drug substance.

Answer 20

generic name

Question 21

An unusual response to a drug. It can manifest as an accelerated, toxic, or inappropriate response to the usual therapeutic dose of a drug.

Answer 21

idiosyncratic reactions

Question 22

The quality of not being suitable for mixture. 2. The quality of not being mixed without chemical changes, or without countering the action of other ingredients in a compound.

Answer 22

incompatibility

Question 23

A single large dose of a drug administered to achieve therapeutic serum levels rapidly.

Answer 23

loading dose

Question 24

The chemical inactivation of a drug through its conversion into a more water-soluble compound or into metabolites that can be excreted from the body.

Answer 24

metabolism

Question 25

An older term for a drug that depresses the central nervous system, thus relieving pain and producing sleep.

Answer 25

narcotic

Question 26

The highest plasma concentration of drug.

Answer 26

peak drug level

Question 27

The study of how medications achieve their effects at various sites in the body.

Answer 27

Pharmacodynamics

Question 28

The study of the metabolism & action of drugs with particular emphasis on the time required for absorption, duration of action, distribution in the body, and method of excretion.

Answer 28

Pharmacokinetics

Question 29

The study of drugs and their origin, nature, properties, and effects upon living organisms.

Answer 29

Pharmacology

Question 30

Sensitivity to light.

Answer 30

photosensitivity

Question 31

A psychological benefit from a compound that may not have the chemical structure of a drug effect.

Answer 31

placebo

Question 32

Strength of a medicine.

Answer 32

potency

Question 33

Effects of medications that are predicted, intended, and desired. The reason the medication was prescribed.

Answer 33

primary or therapeutic effects

Question 34

The particular component of a cell surface that has the ability to react with certain molecules such as proteins, or a virus.

Answer 34

receptors
(receptor site)

Question 35

A genetic factor in bacteria that controls resistance to certain antibiotic drugs.

Answer 35

resistance

Question 36

Unintended or nontherapeutic effects

Answer 36

secondary effects

Question 37

Unintended, often predictable, physiological effects of the medication to which patients usually adapt.

Answer 37

side effects

Question 38

The desired concentration level of a medication in the blood without producing toxic effects.

Answer 38

therapeutic level

Question 39

The ratio between the dose of a drug that causes toxic effects and the dose required to produce desired therapeutic effects.

Answer 39

therapeutic range

Question 40

Decreasing response to repeated doses of a medication.

Answer 40

tolerance

Question 41

A condition resulting from an excess amount of medication in a client’s blood, these effects may be caused by excessive use of medication, overdose, impaired excretion, or idiosyncratic reaction to the medication itself.

Answer 41

toxic effects

Question 42

The lowest plasma concentration of a drug.

Answer 42

trough level