Pharmacology Health Dictionary

When a new drug is introduced, it has usually been studied only in relatively few patients – typically 1,500. If n patients have been studied, and no serious effects observed, there is still a chance of a serious adverse e?ect occurring in the general population as frequently as 3/n (1:500).

Adverse effects can be divided into types. First, those which are closely related to the concentration of the drug and accord with what is known of its PHARMACOLOGY. These so-called type A (augmented pharmacological) effects are distinguished from type B (bizarre) effects which are unpredictable, usually rare, and often severe. ANAPHYLAXIS is the most obvious of these; other examples include bone-marrow suppression with CO-TRIMOXAZOLE; hepatic failure (see HEPATITIS) with SODIUM VALPROATE; and PULMONARY FIBROSIS with AMIODARONE. A more comprehensive classi?cation includes reactions type C (chronic effects), D (delayed effects – such as teratogenesis or carcinogenesis) and E (end-of-dose effects – withdrawal effects). Examples of adverse reactions include nausea, skin eruptions, jaundice, sleepiness and headaches.

While most reported adverse reactions are minor and require no treatment, patients should remind their doctors of any drug allergy or adverse e?ect they have suffered in the past. Medical warning bracelets are easily obtained. Doctors should report adverse effects to the authorities – in the case of Britain, to the Committee on Safety of Medicines (CSM), using the yellow-card reporting machinery.... adverse reactions to drugs

These are broad-spectrum antibiotics. Most are semi-synthetic derivatives of cephalosporin C, an antibiotic originally derived from a sewage outfall in Sardinia.

First-generation examples still in use include cephalexin and cefadroxil. They are orally active and, along with second-generation cefaclor, have a similar antimicrobial spectrum. They are used for ‘resistant’ urinary infections and urinary infections in pregnancy. Cephalosporins have a similar pharmacology to that of penicillin, and about 10 per cent of patients allergic to penicillin will also be hypersensitive to cephalosporins. They are e?ective in treating SEPTICAEMIA, PNEUMONIA, MENINGITIS, biliary-tract infections and PERITONITIS.

Second-generation cefuroxime and cefamandole are less vulnerable to penicillinases and are useful for treating ‘resistant’ bacteria and Haemophilus in?uenzae and Neisseria gonorrhoea. Third-generation cephalosporins include cefotaxime, ceftazidime and others; these are more e?ective than the second-generation in treating some gram-negative infections, especially those causing septicaemia.... cephalosporins

Aloe arborescens. Part used: leaf.

Action. Skin protective against radiation damage from X-rays. Appears to work through anti-oxidant, free-radical scavenging effects. (Japanese Journal of Pharmacology, Yakugaku zasshi – 1990 110(11): pp 876-84) ... aloe

Greek physician (1st century AD) who accompanied the Roman armies as physician through many countries. He left the first illustrated comprehensive book on medicinal substances and their uses (De Materia Medica) which was a major work on pharmacology for over a thousand years. He embraced the work of Hippocrates from whose scrolls he borrowed 150 descriptions of plants for inclusion in his own work of well over 600. Many of these are still in use today, and easily recognisable from the primitive illustrations. The Herbal was 1870 years old before it was translated into English by John Goodyer, in 1933. At Mt Athos, Greece, MSS of Dioscorides can be found in the libraries. A 12th century copy at the Lavra monastery pictures girls gathering violets. ... dioscorides

The Exeter Traditional Medicines, Pharmacology and Chemistry Project. An expert data- base system that integrates on a cumulative basis annotated information about the chemistry, pharmacology and therapeutics of medicinal plants and their constituents from a range of sources. The conventional phytochemical literature, often exhaustively searched and assessed, is augmented by evidence from the areas of clinical pharmacology and ethnopharmacology, and the personal and recorded experience of practicing phytotherapists and herbalists. The material is entered into a knowledge base which is programmed to provide intelligent integration and weighting of the data. Director: Simon Y. Mills MA FNIMH, Centre of Complementary Health Studies, University of Exeter, Devon EX4 4PU. ... extract

n. 1. (in psychology) a simple type of learning consisting of a gradual waning response by the subject to a continuous or repeated stimulus that is not associated with *reinforcement. 2. (in pharmacology) the condition of being psychologically dependent on a drug, following repeated consumption, marked by reduced sensitivity to its effects and a craving for the drug if it is withdrawn. See also dependence.... habituation

the study of drugs used in medicine and dentistry, including *pharmacognosy, *pharmacy, *pharmacology, and therapeutics.... materia medica

DR & Co. West Germany

The firm was founded in Bonn in 1919 by the brothers Dr Gerhard Madaus, Friedemund Madaus and Hans Madaus, as a result of a personal family experience. As a child one of the brothers was seriously ill and his recovery was greatly aided by treatment with medicinal plants and herbs. Impressed by this experience the eldest brother studied medicine. After the First World War the three brothers began the manufacture of medicaments on a small scale.

In 1936 the first Biological Institute was established, in which the effects of constituents were examined. Intensive research work induced Dr Gerhard Madaus to publish, in 1938, a three volume work entitled “Manual of Biological Medicine” which, even today, still enjoys a high reputation in the professional world.

The House of Madaus has its own research departments in pharmacology, pathology, botany and immunisation biology.

Their preparation of Convallaria (Lily of the Valley) in natural compound form has outstandingly proved itself in heart failure. Work on Horse Chestnut, Echinacea and Agnus Castus has advanced herbal pharmacy worldwide. ... madaus

n. 1. a bright yellow metal that is very malleable. In dentistry pure gold is now very rarely used as a filling. Gold alloys are used for *crowns, *inlays, and *bridges, either alone or veneered with a tooth-coloured material, but increasingly nonprecious alloys are being used. Gold alloys are now only rarely used as the metal framework for partial dentures, *cobalt-chromium alloys being used instead. 2. (in pharmacology) a compound of the metal gold, sodium aurothiomalate, used in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis. Side-effects may include blood disorders, severe skin rash and allergy, inflammation of the colon, and kidney damage. Because of this, its use has largely been replaced by methotrexate and biological therapies.... gold

Bulnesia sarmienti

FAMILY: Zygophyllaceae

SYNONYMS: Champaca wood (oil), ‘palo santo’.

GENERAL DESCRIPTION: A small, wild tropical tree up to 4 metres high, with a decorative hard wood.

DISTRIBUTION: Native to South America, especially Paraguay and Argentina. Some oil is distilled in Europe and the USA.

OTHER SPECIES: Distinct from guaiac gum and guaiac resin, known as guaiacum, obtained from related trees Guaiacum officinale and G. sanctum. However, they are somewhat similar products and share common properties.

HERBAL/FOLK TRADITION: The wood is much used for ornamental carving. It was formerly used for treating rheumatism and gout; guaiacum is still current in the British Herbal Pharmacopoeia as a specific for rheumatism and rheumatoid arthritis. Valnet includes guaiacum in his ‘elixirs’ for gout, venereal disease and in mouthwashes.

ACTIONS: Anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidant, antirheumatic, antiseptic, diaphoretic, diuretic, laxative.

EXTRACTION: Essential oil by steam distillation from the broken wood and sawdust.

CHARACTERISTICS: A yellow, amber or greenish, soft or semi-solid mass with a pleasant, tearose type fragrance and sometimes an unpleasant smoky undertone. It blends well with geranium, neroli, oakmoss, rose, costus, sandalwood, amyris, spice and woody-floral bases.

PRINCIPAL CONSTITUENTS: Guaiol (42–72 per cent), bulnesol, bulnesene, guaiene, patchoulene, guaioxide, among others.

SAFETY DATA: Non-toxic, non-irritant, non-sensitizing.

AROMATHERAPY/HOME: USE

Circulationl muscles and joints: Arthritis, gout, rheumatoid arthritis.

OTHER USES: The fluid extract and tincture are used in pharmacology, mainly as a diagnostic reagent in blood tests. Used as a fixative and fragrance component in soaps, cosmetics and perfumes.... guaiacwood