General and Systematic Veterinary Pharmacology

PHARMACOLOGY RELATED TERMS

• Pharmacology is the science that embraces the knowledge of the history, source, physical and chemical properties, compounding, biochemical and physiological effects, mechanism of action, absorption, distribution, biotransformation and excretion of drugs. It is also defined as an experimental science dealing with the properties of drugs and their effects on living system.
• Pharmacodynamics is the study of the biochemical and physiological effects of drugs and their mechanism of action. It is the response of the organism to the action of a drug in the absence of a disease. Pharmacodynamics is 'what the drug does to the body'.
• Pharmacokinetics is the study of the actions of the drugs in the body over a defined period of time. It deals with the absorption, distribution, biotransformation and excretion of the drug. Pharmacokinetics is 'what the body does to the drug'.
• Pharmacometrics is the study of the techniques used in the measurement of drug effects to the administered dose of drug.
• Pharmacogenetics is the study of genetically determined variations in animals that are revealed by the effect of drugs.
• Pharmacogenomics This term describes the use of genetic information to guide the choice of drug therapy on an individual basis. .
• Pharmacoepidemiology is the study of drug effects at the population level. It is concerned with the variability of drug effects between individuals in a population and between populations.
• Pharmacoeconomics aims to quantify in economic terms the cost and benefit of drugs used therapeutically.
• Pharmacy is the science that deals with the preparation, formulation, manufacture, standardization, preservation and dispensing of drugs. The term pharmacy also indicates the place where drugs are dispensed or sold.
• Pharmacognosy is the study of the source of drugs. It also deals with the physical and chemical properties of drugs.
• Materia medica is an obsolete didactic subject that was concerned with pharmacy, posology, pharmacognosy and indications for therapeutic use of the drug.
• Metrology is the study of weights and measures as applied to the preparation and administration of drugs.
• Chronopharmacology is the sudy of how the effects of drugs vary with biological timing and endogenous periodicities.
• Pharmacovigilance is the science and activities relating to the detection, assessment, understanding and prevention of adverse effects or any other drug-related problem.
• Pharmacoepidemiology is the study of the use of and the effects of drugs in large numbers of people.