Pharmacology Question About Treating Patients

Question

Elderly patients specifically commonly have multiple comorbidities. What role does a broad understanding of pharmacology have in helping you care for the patients you will be treating?

Answer 1

Not only Elderly even young can have comorbidities so understanding of Pharmacology is so important . Sometimes effects of one drug can be deleterious on the other system so when a physician prescribes a drug knowledge of pharmacology plays an important role as he/she can outweigh the benefits over the side-effects. In some instance there is no other option so side effects can be handled with some more drugs like anti-epileptic drugs cause VITB 12 deficiency and in result Megaloblastic anemia develop so with anti-epileptic drugs close monitoring and B12 supplements can save the patient from anemia . Here as anti epileptic is mandatory to control seizure but Megaloblastic anemia could also be an outcome so pharmacological effects should be in mind when prescribing a drug.

Answer 2

PPharmacology teaches a range of topic from the effects of a drug to the body to the various receptors found in the body have this knowledge help you to know specific medication a patient with comorbidities can and cannot not know. For instance, if the patient has both high blood pressure and diabetes, giving the patient a medication that can help with the high blood pressure maybe be good but the medication may have a high binding affinity for the receptors the relate with the patient's diabetes. This may lead to more harm that good. Therefore, a broad understanding of Pharmacology help one understand the body and medication of a patient.