Ch. 04 Intro to Pharmacology Key Terms
Antibiotics
A chemical substance with the ability to kill or inhibit the growth of bacteria by interfering with bacteria life processes.
Benzodiazepines
A class of drugs that acts as a sedative, hypnotic, anti-anxiety medication, and anticonvulsant. Many of these drugs share the suffix, -pam.
NSAID
Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs): A class of drugs that provide pain, swelling, and fever reduction.
Pharmacodynamics
The study of the drug's effect on the body.
Serotonin
A neurotransmitter that affects mood, sexual desire, appetite, sleep, and memory, among other things.
Anticonvulsants
A group of medications to treat mood/anxiety changes that work to lift moods and/or change perceptions.
Beta-Adrenergic Blockers
A class of drugs that slow the fight-or-flight response and stress and make the heart beat slower with less force by blocking the hormone epinephrine, also known as adrenaline. Many of these drugs may share the suffix, -olol, as in metoprolol,
GERD
(Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease) A GI disease characterized by radiating burning or pain in the chest and stomach, caused by backflow of acidic stomach contents across an incompetent lower esophageal sphincter; also referred to as heartburn.
Pharmacokinetics
The study of what the body does to the drug: absorption, distribution, metabolism, and elimination of drugs from the body.
Toxicology
The study and identification of natural sources of drugs.
Antidepressants
Medications that help alleviate or lessen the major symptoms of a depressive disorder, mania, anxiety, panic attacks, or eating disorders, by affecting certain brain chemicals.
Calcium Channel Blockers
This class of drugs blocks calcium from entering the cells of the blood vessels to keep them from gaining rigidity.
HDL
(High Density Lipoprotein) Commonly referred to as the "good cholesterol" for its role in removing fats and cholesterol from the body's tissues and carrying them away through the bloodstream and sweeps them away through the bloodstream.
Pharmacology
The science of drugs and their interactions with the systems of living animals.
Withdrawal Symptoms
Effects such as agitation, muscle aches, nausea, and vomiting, sweating, depression, insomnia, and others, as the body struggles to adjust to the lack of the substance to which it is accustomed.
Anti-diabetic Drugs
A class of drugs that help to lower insulin or stimulate the pancreas to produce more insulin. The anti-diabetic drugs are one of the most common medications.
Muscle Relaxants
Drugs that reduce or prevent skeletal muscle contraction and pain.
Indications
The common intended uses of the drug to treat specific diseases, symptoms, or conditions.
PPI
(Protein Pump Inhibitors) A class of drugs that works to stop stomach acid production by blocking gastric acid secretion by inhibiting the enzyme that pumps hydrogen ions into the stomach.
Triglycerides
Three lipids combined; a neutral fat stored in animal adipose tissue that releases free fatty acids into the blood.
Antihistamines
Common terms for drugs that block the H1 receptors, drugs used to treat and block the symptoms of allergies.
Narcotic
Class of drugs that numb or blunt the senses, induce sleep, or has other psychoactive properties, including the opium-based and opium-like drugs.
Lipids
Fatty molecule that is an important component of cell membranes; includes natural oils and waxes.
Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI): An antidepressant drug that blocks the reabsorption of serotonin, with little effect on norepinephrine and fewer side effects than other antidepressant drugs.
Steroids
Complex synthetic drug substances that resemble human hormones.