Pharmacology and Medication
Comprehensive Quiz Guide: Verified Questions with Answers
Section 1: Pharmacology Fundamentals (Questions 1-15)
1. What is pharmacokinetics?
Answer: Study of what the body does to drugs - how drugs move
through the body. Four processes (ADME): Absorption (drug
entering bloodstream), Distribution (drug spreading through body
tissues), Metabolism (drug breakdown, primarily in liver),
Excretion (drug elimination, primarily through kidneys).
Understanding pharmacokinetics helps predict: onset of action,
peak effect, duration, appropriate dosing intervals, drug
accumulation, drug interactions.
2. What is pharmacodynamics?
Answer: Study of what drugs do to the body - mechanisms of drug
action and relationship between drug concentration and effect.
Includes: receptor interactions, dose-response relationships,
therapeutic effects, adverse effects, drug-receptor binding.
Concepts: agonist (activates receptor), antagonist (blocks
receptor), potency (dose required for effect), efficacy (maximum
achievable effect). Understanding pharmacodynamics explains
why drugs work and predicts effects.
3. What is absorption?
Answer: Process by which drug molecules move from site of
administration into bloodstream. Factors affecting: route of
administration (IV = 100%, oral varies), blood flow to site, drug
, solubility (lipophilic crosses membranes better), pH, surface area,
first-pass effect (oral drugs metabolized in liver before reaching
systemic circulation), food interactions, GI motility. Bioavailability:
fraction of administered dose reaching systemic circulation
unchanged.
4. What is distribution?
Answer: Movement of drug from bloodstream to body tissues.
Factors affecting: blood flow (well-perfused organs receive drug
first), protein binding (bound drug inactive, only free drug crosses
membranes), lipid solubility (crosses blood-brain barrier,
placenta), volume of distribution (Vd - extent of distribution
throughout body), barriers (blood-brain, placental). Drugs may
concentrate in specific tissues based on properties.
5. What is metabolism (biotransformation)?
Answer: Chemical alteration of drugs, primarily in liver, converting
lipophilic drugs to water-soluble metabolites for excretion. Phase I
reactions: oxidation, reduction, hydrolysis (cytochrome P450
enzymes). Phase II reactions: conjugation (glucuronidation,
sulfation). Metabolites may be: inactive (most), active (prodrugs
require activation), toxic. First-pass metabolism: oral drugs
metabolized before reaching systemic circulation, reducing
bioavailability.
6. What is excretion?
Answer: Elimination of drugs and metabolites from body,
primarily through kidneys (urine). Other routes: bile/feces, lungs
(volatile substances), sweat, saliva, breast milk. Renal excretion
Comprehensive Quiz Guide: Verified Questions with Answers
Section 1: Pharmacology Fundamentals (Questions 1-15)
1. What is pharmacokinetics?
Answer: Study of what the body does to drugs - how drugs move
through the body. Four processes (ADME): Absorption (drug
entering bloodstream), Distribution (drug spreading through body
tissues), Metabolism (drug breakdown, primarily in liver),
Excretion (drug elimination, primarily through kidneys).
Understanding pharmacokinetics helps predict: onset of action,
peak effect, duration, appropriate dosing intervals, drug
accumulation, drug interactions.
2. What is pharmacodynamics?
Answer: Study of what drugs do to the body - mechanisms of drug
action and relationship between drug concentration and effect.
Includes: receptor interactions, dose-response relationships,
therapeutic effects, adverse effects, drug-receptor binding.
Concepts: agonist (activates receptor), antagonist (blocks
receptor), potency (dose required for effect), efficacy (maximum
achievable effect). Understanding pharmacodynamics explains
why drugs work and predicts effects.
3. What is absorption?
Answer: Process by which drug molecules move from site of
administration into bloodstream. Factors affecting: route of
administration (IV = 100%, oral varies), blood flow to site, drug
, solubility (lipophilic crosses membranes better), pH, surface area,
first-pass effect (oral drugs metabolized in liver before reaching
systemic circulation), food interactions, GI motility. Bioavailability:
fraction of administered dose reaching systemic circulation
unchanged.
4. What is distribution?
Answer: Movement of drug from bloodstream to body tissues.
Factors affecting: blood flow (well-perfused organs receive drug
first), protein binding (bound drug inactive, only free drug crosses
membranes), lipid solubility (crosses blood-brain barrier,
placenta), volume of distribution (Vd - extent of distribution
throughout body), barriers (blood-brain, placental). Drugs may
concentrate in specific tissues based on properties.
5. What is metabolism (biotransformation)?
Answer: Chemical alteration of drugs, primarily in liver, converting
lipophilic drugs to water-soluble metabolites for excretion. Phase I
reactions: oxidation, reduction, hydrolysis (cytochrome P450
enzymes). Phase II reactions: conjugation (glucuronidation,
sulfation). Metabolites may be: inactive (most), active (prodrugs
require activation), toxic. First-pass metabolism: oral drugs
metabolized before reaching systemic circulation, reducing
bioavailability.
6. What is excretion?
Answer: Elimination of drugs and metabolites from body,
primarily through kidneys (urine). Other routes: bile/feces, lungs
(volatile substances), sweat, saliva, breast milk. Renal excretion
