NURS 5663 Pharm Weekly Quizzes | Week 1-6
| Ques ons and Answers with Ra onales |
2026 Updated | 100% Correct - TWU.
1. Which term describes the movement of a drug from its site of administration into the
bloodstream?
A. Distribution
B. Absorption
C. Metabolism
D. Excretion
Answer: B. Absorption
Rationale: Absorption is the process by which a medication enters the systemic circulation from
its site of administration.
2. Bioavailability refers to:
A. The amount of drug bound to protein
B. The fraction of a dose reaching systemic circulation unchanged
C. The rate at which a drug is eliminated
D. The strength of receptor binding
Answer: B. The fraction of a dose reaching systemic circulation unchanged
Rationale: Bioavailability describes the proportion of an administered dose that reaches
systemic circulation in an active form.
3. Which route generally provides 100% bioavailability?
,A. Oral
B. Sublingual
C. Intravenous
D. Intramuscular
Answer: C. Intravenous
Rationale: An IV medication enters systemic circulation directly and therefore has essentially
complete bioavailability.
4. First-pass metabolism primarily affects medications administered by which route?
A. Intravenous
B. Oral
C. Transdermal
D. Inhaled
Answer: B. Oral
Rationale: Oral medications may undergo metabolism in the intestinal wall and liver before
reaching systemic circulation.
5. A drug's half-life is the time required for:
A. The drug to begin working
B. Half of the drug to be absorbed
C. The plasma concentration to decrease by 50%
D. Complete elimination of the drug
Answer: C. The plasma concentration to decrease by 50%
Rationale: Half-life describes the time required for the amount or concentration of a drug in the
body to decrease by one-half.
6. A medication with a narrow therapeutic index requires careful monitoring because:
A. It has no adverse effects
B. Small dose changes can cause toxicity or treatment failure
C. It is poorly absorbed
D. It has a very long onset of action
,Answer: B. Small dose changes can cause toxicity or treatment failure
Rationale: Drugs with a narrow therapeutic index have a small difference between therapeutic
and toxic concentrations.
7. Pharmacodynamics is best defined as:
A. What the body does to the drug
B. What the drug does to the body
C. Drug elimination through the kidneys
D. Drug absorption from the gastrointestinal tract
Answer: B. What the drug does to the body
Rationale: Pharmacodynamics includes drug effects, mechanisms of action, and interactions
with receptors and tissues.
8. An agonist is a medication that:
A. Prevents receptor activation
B. Activates a receptor to produce a response
C. Eliminates another medication
D. Prevents absorption
Answer: B. Activates a receptor to produce a response
Rationale: An agonist binds to a receptor and produces a biological response.
9. A competitive antagonist typically:
A. Irreversibly destroys a receptor
B. Competes with an agonist for receptor binding
C. Increases drug absorption
D. Increases renal elimination
Answer: B. Competes with an agonist for receptor binding
Rationale: Competitive antagonists bind reversibly to receptor sites and may be overcome by
increasing agonist concentration.
, 10. Drug distribution is most affected by:
A. Tissue perfusion and protein binding
B. Tablet color
C. Medication taste
D. Time of prescription writing
Answer: A. Tissue perfusion and protein binding
Rationale: Distribution depends on factors such as blood flow, tissue permeability, protein
binding, and body composition.
11. A patient with low serum albumin may experience increased effects from a highly
protein-bound medication because:
A. Less drug is metabolized
B. More free drug may be available
C. The drug cannot enter tissues
D. Absorption is eliminated
Answer: B. More free drug may be available
Rationale: Reduced protein binding can increase the amount of pharmacologically active
unbound drug.
12. Which organ is most important for the metabolism of many medications?
A. Heart
B. Liver
C. Spleen
D. Pancreas
Answer: B. Liver
Rationale: The liver contains important enzyme systems responsible for metabolism of many
drugs.
13. Which patient factor may significantly reduce renal elimination of a medication?
| Ques ons and Answers with Ra onales |
2026 Updated | 100% Correct - TWU.
1. Which term describes the movement of a drug from its site of administration into the
bloodstream?
A. Distribution
B. Absorption
C. Metabolism
D. Excretion
Answer: B. Absorption
Rationale: Absorption is the process by which a medication enters the systemic circulation from
its site of administration.
2. Bioavailability refers to:
A. The amount of drug bound to protein
B. The fraction of a dose reaching systemic circulation unchanged
C. The rate at which a drug is eliminated
D. The strength of receptor binding
Answer: B. The fraction of a dose reaching systemic circulation unchanged
Rationale: Bioavailability describes the proportion of an administered dose that reaches
systemic circulation in an active form.
3. Which route generally provides 100% bioavailability?
,A. Oral
B. Sublingual
C. Intravenous
D. Intramuscular
Answer: C. Intravenous
Rationale: An IV medication enters systemic circulation directly and therefore has essentially
complete bioavailability.
4. First-pass metabolism primarily affects medications administered by which route?
A. Intravenous
B. Oral
C. Transdermal
D. Inhaled
Answer: B. Oral
Rationale: Oral medications may undergo metabolism in the intestinal wall and liver before
reaching systemic circulation.
5. A drug's half-life is the time required for:
A. The drug to begin working
B. Half of the drug to be absorbed
C. The plasma concentration to decrease by 50%
D. Complete elimination of the drug
Answer: C. The plasma concentration to decrease by 50%
Rationale: Half-life describes the time required for the amount or concentration of a drug in the
body to decrease by one-half.
6. A medication with a narrow therapeutic index requires careful monitoring because:
A. It has no adverse effects
B. Small dose changes can cause toxicity or treatment failure
C. It is poorly absorbed
D. It has a very long onset of action
,Answer: B. Small dose changes can cause toxicity or treatment failure
Rationale: Drugs with a narrow therapeutic index have a small difference between therapeutic
and toxic concentrations.
7. Pharmacodynamics is best defined as:
A. What the body does to the drug
B. What the drug does to the body
C. Drug elimination through the kidneys
D. Drug absorption from the gastrointestinal tract
Answer: B. What the drug does to the body
Rationale: Pharmacodynamics includes drug effects, mechanisms of action, and interactions
with receptors and tissues.
8. An agonist is a medication that:
A. Prevents receptor activation
B. Activates a receptor to produce a response
C. Eliminates another medication
D. Prevents absorption
Answer: B. Activates a receptor to produce a response
Rationale: An agonist binds to a receptor and produces a biological response.
9. A competitive antagonist typically:
A. Irreversibly destroys a receptor
B. Competes with an agonist for receptor binding
C. Increases drug absorption
D. Increases renal elimination
Answer: B. Competes with an agonist for receptor binding
Rationale: Competitive antagonists bind reversibly to receptor sites and may be overcome by
increasing agonist concentration.
, 10. Drug distribution is most affected by:
A. Tissue perfusion and protein binding
B. Tablet color
C. Medication taste
D. Time of prescription writing
Answer: A. Tissue perfusion and protein binding
Rationale: Distribution depends on factors such as blood flow, tissue permeability, protein
binding, and body composition.
11. A patient with low serum albumin may experience increased effects from a highly
protein-bound medication because:
A. Less drug is metabolized
B. More free drug may be available
C. The drug cannot enter tissues
D. Absorption is eliminated
Answer: B. More free drug may be available
Rationale: Reduced protein binding can increase the amount of pharmacologically active
unbound drug.
12. Which organ is most important for the metabolism of many medications?
A. Heart
B. Liver
C. Spleen
D. Pancreas
Answer: B. Liver
Rationale: The liver contains important enzyme systems responsible for metabolism of many
drugs.
13. Which patient factor may significantly reduce renal elimination of a medication?
