Pharm Terms From Chapter 2 Of Pharmacology & The Nursing Process 6Th Ed

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Additive effects

Back 1

Drug interactions in which the effect of a combination or two or more drugs with similar actions is equivalent to the sum of the individual effects of the same drugs given alone. For example, 1 + 1 = 2

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Adverse drug event

Back 2

Any undesirable occurence related to administering or failing to administer a prescribed medication

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Adverse drug reaction

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Any unexpected, unintended, undesired, or excessive response to a medication given at therapeutic dosages (as opposed to overdose).

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Adverse effects

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A general term for any undesirable effects that are a direct response to one or more drugs

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Agonist

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A drug that binds to and stimulates the activity of one or more receptors in the body

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Allergic reaction

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An immunologic hypersensitivity reaction resulting from the unusual sensitivity of a patient to a particular medication; a type of adverse drug event

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Antagonist

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A drug that binds to and inhibits the activity of one or more receptors in the body. Antagonist are also called inhibitors.

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Antagonistic effects

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Drug interactions in which the effect of a combination of two or more drugs is less than the sum of the individual effects of the same drugs given alone (1 + 1 = less than 2); it is usually caused by an antagonizing (blocking or reducing) effect of one drug on another.

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Bioavailability

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A measure of the extent of drug absorption for a given drug and route (from 0% to 100%).

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Biotransformation

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One or more biochemical reactions involving a parent drug. Biotransformation occurs mainly in the liver and produces a metabolite that is either inactive or active. Also known as metabolism.

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Blood-brain barrier

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The barrier system that restricts the passage of various chemicals and microscopic entities (e.g., bacteria, viruses) between the bloodstream and the CNS. It still allows for the passage of essential substances such as oxygen.

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Chemical name

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The name that describes the chemical composition and molecular structure of a drug.

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Contraindication

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Any condition, especially one related to a disease state or other patient characterisitic, including current or recent drug therapy, that renders a particular form of treatment improper or undesirable

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Cytochrome P-450

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The general name for a large class of enzymes that play a significant role in drug metabolism

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Dependence

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A state in which there is a compulsive or chronic need, as for a drug

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Dissolution

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The process by which solid forms of drugs disintegrate in the gastrointestinal tract and become soluble before being absorbed into the circulation

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Drug

Back 17

Any chemical that affects the physiologic processes of a living organism

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Drug actions

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The cellular processes involved in the interaction between a drug and body cells (e.g., the action of a drug on a receptor protein); also called mechanism of action

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Drug effects

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The physiologic reactions of the body to a drug. They can be therapeutic or toxic and describe how the function of the body is affected as a whole by the drug. The terms onset, peak, and duration are used to describe drug effects (most often referring to therapeutic effects).

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Drug-induced teratogenesis

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The development of congenital anomalies or defects in the developing fetus caused by the toxic effects of drugs

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Drug interaction

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Alteration in the pharmacologic activity of a given drug caused by the presence of one or more additional drugs; it is usually related to effects on the enzymes required for metabolism of the involved drugs

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Duration of action

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The length of time the concentration of a drug in the blood or tissues is sufficient to elicit a response

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Enzymes

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Protein molecules that catalyze one or more of a variety of biochemical reactions, including those related to the body's own physiologic processes as well as those related to drug metabolism

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First-pass effect

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The initial metabolism in the liver of a drug absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract before the drug reaches systemic circulation through the bloodstream

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Generic name

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The name given to a drug by the United States Adopted Names Council. Also called the nonproprietary name. The generic name is much shorter and simpler than the chemical name and is not protected by trademark

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Half-life

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In pharmacokinetics, the time required for half of an administered dose of drug to be eliminated by the body, or the time it takes for the blood level of a drug to be reduced by 50% (also called elimination half-life).

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Idiosyncratic reaction

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An abnormal and unexpected response to a medication, other than an allergic reaction, that is peculiar to an individual patient

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Incompatibility

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The characteristic that causes two parenteral drugs or solutions to undergo a reaction when mixed or given together that results in the chemical deterioration of at least one of the drugs

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Intraarticular

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Within a joint (e.g., intraarticular injection)

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Intrathecal

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Withinin a sheath (e.g., the theca of the spinal cord, as in an intrathecal injection into the subarachnoid space)

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Medication error

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Any preventable adverse drug event involving inappropriate medication use by a patient or health care professional; it may or may not cause patient harm

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Medication use process

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The prescribing, dispensing, and administering of medications, and the monitoring of their effects

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Metabolites(s)

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A chemical form of a drug that is the product of one or more biochemical (metabolic) reactions involving the parent drug. Active metabolites are those that have pharmacologic activity of their own, even if the parent drug is inactive. Inactive metabolites lack pharmacologic activity and are simply drug waste products awaiting excretion from the body (e.g., via the urinary, gastrointestinal, or respiratory tract).

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Onset of action

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The time required for a drug to elicit a therapeutic response after dosing

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Parent drug

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The chemical form of a drug that is administered before it is metabolized by the body's biochemical reactions into its active or inactive metabolites. A parent drug that is not pharmacologically active itself is called a prodrug. A prodrug is then metabolized to pharmacologically active metabolites

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Peak effect

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The time required for a drug to reach its maximum therapeutic response in the body

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Peak level

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The maximum concentration of a drug in the body after administration, usually measured in a blood sample for therapeutic drug monitoring

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Pharmaceutics

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The science of preparing and dispensing drugs, including dosage form design

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Pharmacodynamics

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The study of the biochemical and physiologic interactions of drugs at their sites of activity. It examines the physicochemical properites of drugs and their pharmacologic interactions with body receptors

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Pharmacogenetics

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The study of the influence of genetic factors on drug response, including the nature of genetic aberrations that result in the absence, overabundance, or insufficienty of drug-metabolizing enzymes (also called pharmacogenomics).

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Pharmocognosy

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The study of drugs that are obtained from natural plant and animal sources

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Pharmacokinetics

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The rate of drug distribution among various body compartments after a drug has entered the body. It includes the phases of absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion of drugs

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Pharmacology

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The broadest term for the study or science of drugs

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Pharmacotherapeutics

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The treatment of pathologic conditions through the use of drugs

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Prodrug

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An inactive drug dosage form that is converted to an active metabolite by various biochemical reactions once it is inside the body

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Receptor

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A molecular structure within or on the outer surface of a cell. Receptors bind specific substances (e.g., drug molecules), and one or more corresponding cellular effects (drug actions) occurs as a result of this drug-receptor interaction

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Steady state

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The physiologic state in which the amount of drug removed via elimination is equal to the amount of drug absorbed with each dose

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Substrates

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Substances (e.g., drugs or natural biochemicals in the body) on which an enzyme acts

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Synergistic effects

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Drug interactions in which the effect of a combination of two or more drugs with similar actions is greater than the sum of the individual effects of the same drugs given alone (1 + 1 = greater than 2)

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Therapeutic drug monitoring

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The process of measuring drug peak and trough levels to gauge the level of patient's drug exposure and allow adjustment of dosages with the goals of maximizing therapeutic effects and minimizing toxicity

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Therapeutic effect

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The desired or intended effect of a particular medication

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Therapeutic index

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The ratio between the toxic and therapeutic concentrations of a drug

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Tolerance

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Reduced response to a drug after prolonged use

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Toxic

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The quality of being poisonous (i.e., injurious to health or dangerous to life)

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Toxicity

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The condition of producing adverse bodily effects due to poisonous qualities

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Toxicology

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The study of poisons, including toxic drug effects, and applicable treatments

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Trade name

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The commercial name given to a drug product by its manufacturer; also called the proprietary name

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Trough level

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The lowest concentration of drug reached in the body after it falls from its peak level, usually measured in a blood samle for therapeutic drug monitoring