Pharmacology Chapter Overview

Learning Objectives

• Define key pharmacological terminologies.
• Understand pharmacodynamics (effects of drugs on the body) and pharmacokinetics (how the body processes drugs).
• Comprehend theoretical pharmacokinetics concepts: half-life, order of kinetics, steady state, and plasma concentration.
• Recognize drug safety and effectiveness, including factors affecting drug action and possible adverse drug reactions.

Definitions

• Pharmacology: Study of drugs, their effects on living systems, history, sources, physicochemical properties, dosage forms, administration methods, and adverse effects.
• Drug: A substance that modifies physiological systems or pathological states for therapeutic benefit or diagnosis.
• Pharmacokinetics (PK): Focus on absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion (ADME) of drugs; describes what the body does to drugs.
• Pharmacodynamics (PD): Examines the biological and therapeutic effects of drugs; explains what drugs do to the body.
• Pharmacotherapeutics: Involves the selection and proper use of drugs for prevention and treatment of diseases.
• Toxicology: Part of pharmacology that studies the undesirable effects of drugs on biological processes.
• Clinical Pharmacology: Systematic study of drugs in humans, assessing pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics, safety, efficacy, and side effects.
• Pharmacy: Branch of science related to preparing, preserving, compounding, and using drugs.

Regulatory Agencies

• Food & Drug Administration (FDA): Federal agency responsible for ensuring drug safety and efficacy in the U.S., along with food and cosmetics oversight.

Adverse Effects

• Adverse or Side-Effect: Unintended actions of a drug; can occur due to lack of specificity in drug action; all drugs may produce adverse effects.

Drug Names

• Chemical Name: Describes a drug's chemical composition and molecular structure.
• Generic Name: Nonproprietary name approved for the drug, provided by the United States Adopted Name Council.
• Trade Name/Brand Name: Proprietary name with registered trademark, restricted by the manufacturer.

Drug Classification

• Pharmacologic Class: Drugs sharing similar characteristics (e.g., beta-adrenergic blockers).
• Therapeutic Class: Groups drugs based on therapeutic use (e.g., antihypertensives).

Prescription Writing Principles

• Prescription: Written, verbal, or electronic order for medication for a specific patient.
• Five Rights of Medication Administration:
  • Right drug
  • Right dose
  • Right time
  • Right route
  • Right patient

Prescription Formatting

• Parts of Prescription:
  • Heading
  • Body
  • Closing
• Common Abbreviations:
  • Tablets - tab, Capsules - cap, Syrup - syr, Injection - Inj, etc.

Routes of Administration

• PO: by mouth, PR: per rectum, IM: intramuscular, IV: intravenous, ID: intradermal, IN: intranasal, TP: topical, SL: sublingual, BUCC: buccal, IP: intraperitoneal.

Controlled Substances

• Defined as prescription drugs with tightly controlled use and distribution due to abuse potential or associated risks; regulation is more stringent.