General Pharmacologic Principles

Flashcards covering basic pharmacology terms, drug development, interactions, kinetics, dynamics, and safety rules from Chapter 1 of Integrated Cardiopulmonary Pharmacology.

Phase I Clinical Testing

The initial stage of drug testing performed on animals.

Phase II Clinical Testing

The stage of drug testing involving healthy volunteers.

Phase III Clinical Testing

Testing a medication on individuals with the specific disease for which the drug was created.

Phase IV Clinical Testing

Post-marketing research conducted after a drug is approved for the market.

Nutraceuticals

Herbal supplements, vitamins, and minerals that are typically taken PO (orally) and are not regulated by the FDA.

Generic name

A drug name assigned by the United States Adopted Names (USAN) Council; for example, Albuterol.

Off-label use

Using a medication for a purpose other than the specific indication for which it was originally created.

Relative contraindication

A situation where the benefit of administering a medication outweighs the potential risk.

Absolute contraindication

A situation where, under no circumstance, is the medication to be administered.

Additive Interaction

A drug interaction categorized as $1+1 = 2$.

Synergism

A drug interaction where the combined effect is greater than the sum of the individual parts, categorized as $1+1 = 3$.

Potentiation

A drug interaction where one drug has no effect but increases the response of another, categorized as $1+0 = 3$.

Red flag drugs

Medications that require close patient monitoring due to interactions; examples include Warfarin, Cimetidine, Aspirin, Phenytoin, and Theophylline.

Teratogenic

The property of a drug that has the potential to damage a fetus in utero.

Enteral routes

Administration routes using the gastrointestinal tract for systemic purposes, including PO, SL, NG, PEG, and PR.

Parenteral routes

Injectable administration routes, such as IV, IO, IM, and SC.

Pharmacokinetics

What the body does to the drug, encompassing absorption, distribution, metabolism, and elimination.

Bioavailability

The amount of a drug that is absorbed into the systemic circulation.

Pharmacodynamics

What the drug does to the body, often involving the presence of the drug at receptor sites.

Agonist

A chemical that binds to a receptor and causes a normal stimulation or response.

Antagonist

A chemical that binds to a receptor to stop or prevent a normal response, such as an anti-histamine.

Potency

The specific dose of a drug required to achieve efficacy.

Efficacy

The degree to which a drug achieves what it was intended for.

Tachyphylaxis

The sudden onset of a decreased response to a drug.

Half-life

The amount of time required for the concentration of a drug in the body to decrease by half.

Steady state

The state where the maximum concentration of a drug is achieved.

Loading dose

A first dose given at a higher dosage to quickly increase the blood concentration of a drug.

Therapeutic index

A measure of drug safety calculated as the ratio of the minimum effective dose to the average maximum tolerated dose.

Pharmacogenomics

The study of how genes explain drug efficacy or toxicity, such as how the $CYP2D6$ mutation affects codeine metabolism.

Six Rights

The commonsense rules for medication administration: Right drug, Right dose, Right patient, Right time, Right route, and Right documentation.