Medication and Drug Treatments: Uses and Types
Drug Treatments: Drugs and Medicines
Drugs are products used to cure, alleviate, prevent, or diagnose diseases. They contain one or more active ingredients, which are substances that give medicines their properties.
All medicines may lead to adverse reactions, which are negative and unwanted effects. Health authorities must verify that a drug’s benefits outweigh the possible adverse reactions before it can be marketed.
Each medication should be taken in the proper dosage. Exceeding the recommended dose does not increase the drug’s benefits and, instead, increases the possibility of adverse reactions.
Some drugs can interfere with each other when administered together. For example, one drug might hinder the absorption of another. However, these drug interactions are generally known.
How Drugs Work
Drugs bind to molecules inside the body called receptors. These molecules are usually proteins, and their functions change when drugs bind to them. Some receptors are found throughout the body, while others are found only in specific groups of cells.
From the time a drug enters our body until it reaches its receptors, it must cross several barriers, such as the wall of the digestive system and liver, and the blood vessel walls. Some of these barriers can be bypassed by changing the route of administration.
Drug Administration Methods
There are different ways to administer drugs, including:
- Oral: Tablets, capsules, pills.
- Sublingual: Tablets placed under the tongue.
- Rectal: Suppositories.
- Injection: Subcutaneously, intramuscularly, or intravenously.
- Intranasal: Administered with a nebulizer.
- Topical or Skin: Ointments.
Research and Development of New Drugs
Few drugs bind to a single type of receptor. Most bind to different receptors, with varying degrees of similarity. For example, a drug effective for pain relief may cause drowsiness, which is an adverse reaction.
Currently, research focuses on highly specific drugs that bind to only one type of receptor to minimize adverse effects and maximize benefits.
The Pharmaceutical Industry: Patents and Generics
Much drug research is conducted in the pharmaceutical industry, which consists of major multinational companies that generate large economic benefits. These companies have research departments that create and test new drugs.
To market a drug, it must be approved by health authorities. This process includes:
- Tests in experimental animals and healthy people.
- Clinical trials on patients if the initial results are satisfactory.
- Marketing begins if the clinical trials show the drug is effective and safe.
When a company creates a new drug, it applies for a patent, which authorizes it to be the sole manufacturer and marketer of the drug for a period of ten to twenty years.
When the patent expires, other laboratories can manufacture the drug, which is then called a generic. These generic drugs have the same active ingredient but are cheaper for both the patient and the economy.