Clinical Pharmacokinetics Study Quiz

Clinical Pharmacokinetics

• Clinical pharmacokinetics is the study of the time course of drug absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion, and their corresponding pharmacological response.
• It models what happens to a drug after administration to a patient.
• Establishing the relationship between concentration and effect is crucial for pharmacokinetics to be beneficial to the patient.

Parkinson's Disease (PD)

• PD affects 1% of the population over 65 years old, increasing to 2% over 80 years old.
• One in 20 patients is diagnosed before their 40th year.
• PD affects around 127,000 people in the UK, with over 6 million sufferers worldwide.
• Demographically, the disease has a small male/female predominance (around 3:2).
• Prevalence is higher in European and North and South American populations compared to Arabic, African, and Asian countries.

Risk Factors and Causes

• Age is the biggest risk factor for PD, with major implications for public health as the global population ages.
• Both genetic and environmental factors contribute to the risk of developing PD.
• Environmental factors can precipitate the onset of PD in a genetically susceptible individual.
• Pesticide exposure, rural living, agricultural occupation, and well water drinking are associated with an increased risk of developing PD.
• Tobacco smoking, coffee drinking, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug use, calcium channel blocker use, and alcohol consumption are linked to a reduced risk of the disease.

Motor Features and Treatment

• Levodopa is used to manage some motor features of PD, but it is associated with motor complications after some years, such as on–off problems and dyskinesias.
• Other therapeutics, including deep brain stimulation, can be used to treat these complications.
• Non-motor symptoms, present from disease onset, contribute significantly to the quality of life of patients with PD, presenting a complex therapeutic challenge.

Parkinsonism

• Parkinsonism describes the main motor features of PD, but can also be a feature of other neurodegenerative conditions, such as multiple system atrophy, progressive supranuclear palsy, and corticobasal degeneration.
• Parkinsonism can also be a side effect of various medications.