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Effects of Medication
Effects of Medication
• Side Effects -- unintended or secondary effects
• 1. May not be harmful
• 2. May permit the drug to be used for a secondary
purpose
• Adverse Effects -- undesired effects that may be
harmful
• 1. May damage function of vital organs over
prolonged time
• 2. May be minimized by reducing dosage or
switching medication
Effects of Medication
• Toxic Effects -- can be extremely harmful; can sometimes be life
• threatening; implies drug poisoning
• 1. Poison -- any substance which, when ingested, inhaled
or absorbed, or when applied to, injected into, or
developed within the body, in relatively small amounts,
by its chemical action may cause damage to structure or
disturbance of function
• 2. Toxin -- a poison; frequently used to refer specifically to
a protein produced by some higher plants, certain
animals, and pathogenic bacteria, which is highly toxic for
other living organisms. Such substances are differentiated
from the simple chemical poisons and the vegetable
alkaloids by their high molecular weight and antigenicity.
Effects of Medication
• Toxicity -- the quality of being poisonous, especially
the degree of virulence of a toxic micron or of a
poison
• Drug must be stopped
• Additionally may require supportive treatment and
administration of antidotes
Effects of Medication
• Causes of Adverse and Toxic Effects--• All drugs are potentially dangerous
• 1. Many medications used for everyday illnesses or
chronic diseases are considered harmless, especially
if OTC
• 2. OTCs perceived generally to be safe since no
prescription is required
• 3. Prescribed medications assumed to be safe since
physician would not prescribe something that might
harm the patient
• 4. Lack of understanding -- drugs can cause toxicity
even if taken as directed
Effects of Medication
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Overdose -- taking more than prescribed or advised
1. Accidentally
2. Purposeful
Age
1. Child may be unable to metabolize at needed
rate if dose too large, e.g., parent giving adult dose
of Tylenol
• 2. Elderly -- metabolism slows down, organs (liver,
kidneys) not working at full capacity – drug levels
can build up, eventually leading to toxic levels
Effects of Medication
• Disease
• 1. Weakens or impairs function of organs causing
drugs not to be metabolized at efficient rate,
potentially leading to toxic buildup
• a. liver – cannot metabolize drugs at most efficient
rate
• b. kidneys – cannot excrete substances at most
efficient rate
• 2. Some medications cause the organs to be
weakened, sometimes to the point of complete
failure (may be temporary)
Effects of Medication
• Drug Interactions
• 1. May react with other drugs creating toxic
substances when combined
• 2. May react with another drug potentiating the
effect
• 3. Medication may interact with certain foods,
leading to toxic buildup
• a. slowing down metabolizing of drug
• b. preventing metabolizing of drug
• c. combining with drug causing toxic substances to
develop
Effects of Medication
• Allergies -- patient’s reactivity is altered due to previous
contact with drug acting as antigen or allergen
• 1. Unpredictable
• a. may develop after drug has already been taken for
some time
• b. may be idiosyncratic; no known reason as to why
patient reacts this way to drug
• 2. Not dose-related
• 3. Can cause serious toxicity
• 4. May be caused by combination with other
substances, intentional or not
• 5. Symptoms vary greatly
Effects of Medication
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Treatment
A. Overdose and Toxic Effect
1. Inducing emesis
2. Gastric lavage
3. Activated charcoal will absorb some chemicals
4. In some cases reducing drug levels may be
sufficient, e.g., in gentamycin
• 5. Reduce dosage and frequency
• 6. Intermittent discontinuation of drug until serum
levels back within normal range
Effects of Medication
• Allergies – the drug must be stopped or discontinued
until sensitivity testing is completed
• Supportive Treatment
• 1. Kidney dialysis in case of renal failure
• 2. Administration of antidotes
• 3. Mechanical ventilation
• 4. Administration of drug-binding agents, e.g., Digibind
for digitalis
• Safety
• 1. Child resistant containers or caps
• 2. Take medication as prescribed
• http://learn.genetics.utah.edu/content/addiction/drug
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