Pharmacology Practice Quiz

Pharmacology Practice Questions Summary

• The first day of the board exam consists of 400 pharmacology questions.
• The second day of the board exam consists of 100 case-based questions.
• The first question asks about the calculation of epinephrine doses for carpools.
• The second question asks about cross allergenicity with penicillin, specifically with cephalosporins like cephalexin.
• The third question asks about the adverse effect of methemoglobinemia associated with the use of prilocaine.
• The fourth question asks about the principal use of quinidine, which is to treat arrhythmias.
• The fifth question asks about the amount of codeine in analgesic compound number three, which is 30 milligrams.
• The sixth question asks about the need for supplemental administration of potassium when using thiazide diuretics to treat hypertension.
• The seventh question asks about the enteral route of administration, which is the oral route.
• The eighth question asks about the mechanism of action of neostigmine, which is a cholinesterase inhibitor that blocks acetylcholinesterase activity.
• The ninth question asks about the interaction between tetracycline and penicillin, which reduces the effectiveness of penicillin.
• The tenth question asks about the mechanism of action of benzodiazepines, which modulate the GABA receptor.
• The eleventh question asks about the mechanism of action of aspirin, which inhibits thromboxane A2 synthesis and platelet aggregation.

Calculating the Weight of Local Anesthetic

• The weight of the entire liquid in a car pool can be calculated by multiplying the volume of the liquid by the weight of one milliliter of liquid.
• For a 100% lidocaine solution, the weight of the liquid would be 1.8 grams or 1,800 milligrams.
• To calculate the weight of a specific local anesthetic drug, the percentage of the drug in the solution must be considered.
• To calculate the weight of a 1% solution of local anesthetic, divide the weight of the 100% solution by 100.
• For a 2% lidocaine solution, the weight of the drug would be 36 milligrams per car pool.
• For a 4% solution, the weight of the drug would be 72 milligrams per car pool.
• To calculate the weight of multiple car pools of the same solution, multiply the weight of the drug per car pool by the number of car pools.
• A practice question asks how much epinephrine is in a 2% lidocaine solution with a ratio of 1:100,000.
• The weight of epinephrine can be calculated by dividing the weight of a 1% solution by 1,000.
• For a 1,000th of a percent of epinephrine, the weight would be 0.018 milligrams.
• Epinephrine is a vasoconstrictor in local anesthetics and has three purposes: prolonging numbness, reducing toxicity, and promoting hemostasis.
• The maximum amount of epinephrine allowed for a systemically healthy patient is 0.2 milligrams, while for a cardiac patient it is 0.04 milligrams. The maximum amount of lidocaine without vasoconstrictor is 4.4 milligrams per kilogram, and with vasoconstrictor it is 7 milligrams per kilogram.

Calculating the Weight of Local Anesthetic

• The weight of the entire liquid in a car pool can be calculated by multiplying the volume of the liquid by the weight of one milliliter of liquid.
• For a 100% lidocaine solution, the weight of the liquid would be 1.8 grams or 1,800 milligrams.
• To calculate the weight of a specific local anesthetic drug, the percentage of the drug in the solution must be considered.
• To calculate the weight of a 1% solution of local anesthetic, divide the weight of the 100% solution by 100.
• For a 2% lidocaine solution, the weight of the drug would be 36 milligrams per car pool.
• For a 4% solution, the weight of the drug would be 72 milligrams per car pool.
• To calculate the weight of multiple car pools of the same solution, multiply the weight of the drug per car pool by the number of car pools.
• A practice question asks how much epinephrine is in a 2% lidocaine solution with a ratio of 1:100,000.
• The weight of epinephrine can be calculated by dividing the weight of a 1% solution by 1,000.
• For a 1,000th of a percent of epinephrine, the weight would be 0.018 milligrams.
• Epinephrine is a vasoconstrictor in local anesthetics and has three purposes: prolonging numbness, reducing toxicity, and promoting hemostasis.
• The maximum amount of epinephrine allowed for a systemically healthy patient is 0.2 milligrams, while for a cardiac patient it is 0.04 milligrams. The maximum amount of lidocaine without vasoconstrictor is 4.4 milligrams per kilogram, and with vasoconstrictor it is 7 milligrams per kilogram.

Key Facts about Antibiotics and Drug Interactions

• Antibiotics can be categorized into different classes, such as penicillins, cephalosporins, monobactams, carbapenems, tetracyclines, macrolides, and lincosamides.
• Penicillins, cephalosporins, monobactams, and carbapenems are all beta-lactam antibiotics that share a beta-lactam molecular structure.
• Tetracyclines are bacteriostatic antibiotics that inhibit protein synthesis by targeting the 30s ribosomal subunit.
• Macrolides and lincosamides are also bacteriostatic antibiotics that inhibit protein synthesis, but they target the 50s ribosomal subunit.
• Antibiotic prophylaxis is required before dental treatment for patients with certain cardiovascular conditions, such as prosthetic heart valves, history of endocarditis, heart transplant with valve dysfunction, or congenital heart problems.
• Patients with a compromised immune system, such as organ transplant recipients or those undergoing cancer therapy, may also require antibiotic prophylaxis before dental treatment.
• The first choice for antibiotic prophylaxis is usually amoxicillin, while clindamycin is used as an alternative for patients with a penicillin allergy.
• In cases where oral medications are not an option, intravenous or intramuscular administration of antibiotics, such as ampicillin, may be necessary.
• Common side effects of antibiotics include gastrointestinal upset, pseudomembranous colitis (associated with clindamycin), superinfections (caused by broad-spectrum antibiotics), aplastic anemia (associated with chloramphenicol), and liver damage (associated with tetracycline).
• Drug interactions can occur with antibiotics, such as interactions between bactericidal and bacteriostatic drugs, penicillin and probenecid, tetracycline and antacids or dairy products, broad-spectrum antibiotics and anticoagulants, antibiotics and oral contraceptives, and macrolides and certain drugs like Seldane or digoxin.
• Clindamycin concentrates well in bone, while tetracycline concentrates well in gingival crevicular fluid.
• Antivirals, like acyclovir and Valcyclovir, are used to treat herpes infections, while antifungals, like fluconazole and ketoconazole, are used to treat fungal infections, such as candidiasis.