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Pharm Definitions
Internal Medicine
Term | Definition |
---|---|
Pharmacology | the study of drugs that interact with living systems through chemical processes, especially by binding to regulatory molecules and activating or inhibiting normal body processes |
Drug | substance that affects the function of living cells, used in medicine to diagnose, cure, prevent the occurrence of diseases and disorders, and prolong the life of clients with incurable conditions |
Chemical Name | specific structure of the compound |
Generic Name | official name, often derived from the chemical name |
Brand Name | trade name assigned by the pharmaceutical company |
Pharmacotherapeutics | the area of pharmacology that refers to the use of specific drugs to prevent, treat, or diagnose disease |
Pharmacokinetics | the study of how the body deals with the drug in terms of the way it is… |
A | Absorbed |
D | Distributed |
M | Metabolized |
E | Eliminated |
Pharmacodynamics | the analysis of what the drug does to the body, including the mechanism by which the drug exerts its effect |
Toxicology | the study of the harmful effects of chemicals |
Pharmacy | deals with the preparation and dispensing of medications |
Side Effects | common and expected, but usually undesirable action of a medication |
Adverse Reactions (ADRs) | unexpected, severe, and dangerous reactions which may occasionally occur with a medication |
Dose | a quantity to be administered at one time |
Dosage | the dose, frequency, and duration |
Absorption | the transfer of a drug from its site of administration to the bloodstream |
Topical route | directly applied to the skin, includes eye/ear drops |
Enteral routes | oral (works in about 40 minutes), rectal, gastric feeding tube |
Parenteral routes | Transmuccosal: buccal (cheek), sublingual, inhalation Injection (intravenous, intra-arterial, subcutaneous, intramuscular, intrathecal (directly to the CNS)) Transdermal (ex/ iontophoresis) |
po | by mouth |
IM | intramuscular injection |
SC or SQ | subcutaneous injection |
SL | sublingual |
IV | intravenous |
PR | per rectum |
hs | at hour of sleep |
ac | before meals |
pc | after meals |
q | every |
qd | every day |
bid | twice/day |
tid | three times/day |
qid | four times/day |
qod | every other day |
prn | as needed |
Bioavailability | the extent to which the drug reaches the systemic circulation, depends on the route of administration and on the drug’s ability to cross membrane and tissue barriers |
Distribution | the transport of a drug from the bloodstream to tissue sites where it will be effective, as well as to sites where the drug may be stored, metabolized, or eliminated from the body |
Drug clearance | the rate at which the active drug is removed from the body |
agonist | drug enhances cell activity |
antagonist | drug inhibits cell activity |
Polypharmacology | the excessive and unnecessary use of medications - more seen in elderly |
Half-life | the time it takes for the amount or concentration of a drug to fall by 50% in the body (typically in the plasma) |
Potency (effectiveness) | the dose of a drug that produces a given response in a specific amplitude |
Ceiling Effect | (maximal efficacy) the point at which there is no further increase in the response of the drug |
Threshold dosage | the level when therapeutic response 1st occurs |
Median Effective Dose (ED50) | dose at which ½ of the population will respond in a specified manner |
Median Toxic Dose (TD50) | dose at which ½ of the population will exhibit an adverse reaction |
Therapeutic Index (TI=(TD50/ED50)) | a drug calculation which indicates drug safety. The higher the TI, the safer the drug, or the larger dose needed to evoke a toxic response than it does to cause a beneficial effect |