Impact of Pharmacokinetics on Medications Selection and Administration

Impact of Pharmacokinetics on Medications Selection and Administration

Pharmacokinetics is the movement and distribution of drugs through the body as it is absorbed, distributed, metabolized and eliminated. Both pharmacokinetics (ADME) and pharmacodynamics are important in determining the effect that a drug regimen is likely to produce. Extrinsic factors such as environmental exposures or concomitant medications can affect the efficacy of a medication.

The genetic study of pharmacokinetics (PK) and pharmacodynamics (PD) has received considerable interest because of its fundamental importance in designing personalized medications based on an individual’s genetic architecture (Evans and McLeod, 2003; Weinshilboum, 2003).

As an advanced health care provider, understanding the pharmacokinetics of each medication that will be prescribed in each patient is very essential because this will determine the efficacy of the medications and prevent toxicity of a patient’s drug therapy. Clearly, the interactions between a drug and the human body are incredibly complex.

This makes choosing the most appropriate medication and dose complicated, and that choice becomes more obscure when a patient is taking many other medications. This complexity makes it all the more essential that prescriptions be filled carefully and accurately at all times (Sakai, 2008).

References

Evans, W.E., McLeod, H.L. (2003). Pharmacogenomics- Drug disposition, drug targets, and side effects. New England Journal of Medicine 348; 538-549. https://doi.org/10.1056/nejmra020526

Sakai, J.B. (2008). Practice pharmacology for the pharmacy technician. Philadelphia PA: Jones & Bartlett Learning. Chapter 3, “Pharmacokinetics: The Absorption,

Distribution, and Excretion of Drugs” (pp. 27-40).