Pharmacology

- The study of drugs and their action on living organisms

- The study of biological effects of chemicals
Drug
- A natural or artificial substance given to treat or prevent disease
- Chemicals that are introduced into the body to cause some sort of change

Pharmacotherapeutics
Clinical Pharmacology
- Branch of pharmacology that uses drugs to treat, prevent and diagnose disease
Concerns:
- Body’s response to the drug
- Drug’s effect on the body

Pharmacognosy
- The study of natural (plant and animal) drug sources

Excipients
- Fillers and inert substances
- Used in drug preparation to allow the drug to take on a particular size and shape and to enhance
drug dissolution

DRUG ACTION
1. Pharmaceutic
- 80%op of drugs are taken by mouth and goes through three phases: pharmaceutic,
pharmacokinetic, and pharmacodynamic
- Is the first phase of drug action

a. Disintegration – breakdown of a tablet into smaller particles

b. Dissolution – dissolving of the smaller particles in the GI fluid before absorption

Rate limiting
- Time it takes the drug to disintegrate and dissolve to become available for the body to absorb it

Pharmacokinetics
- How the body acts on the drug
- Involves drug movement through the body to reach sites of action, metabolism, and excepting
- Specific processes are absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion

Critical Concentration
- Amount of drug that is needed to cause a therapeutic effect
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