NTA Level 6 • Semester 1 • PST06107 Basic Veterinary Pharmacology – Complete Full Notes Complete educational source text in one page Completeness safeguard: this page keeps the complete educational module/source wording in one place so learning material is not lost when browsing topic by topic. Presenter/tutor metadata is intentionally excluded. PST 06107 Basic Veterinary Pharmacology Session 1: Introduction to Veterinary Pharmacology Learning Tasks By the end of this session students are expected to be able to: Define terminologies used in veterinary pharmacology Outline the therapeutic classes of veterinary medicines Describe principles and concepts applied in veterinary pharmacology Explain the sources veterinary medicines Outline the basic concepts in veterinary toxicology Explain the importance of veterinary pharmacology in the management of common animal diseases General Principles and Concepts of Veterinary Pharmacology and Toxicology Veterinary Pharmacology is the study of substances that interact with living systems through chemical processes, especially by binding to regulatory molecules and activating or inhibiting normal body processes in animals Veterinary pharmacology is concerned with the use of drugs for diseases and health problems unique to animals The sources of veterinary medicines are also similar to the sources of human medicines namely plants, animals, minerals and synthetic sources General Principles and Concepts of Veterinary Pharmacology and Toxicology Cont … The therapeutic classes of veterinary medicines include antibiotics, antifungal, antiviral, anti-inflammatory drugs, growth promoters, ant parasitic drugs, insecticides and tranquilizers The principles and concepts of veterinary pharmacology are similar to human pharmacology They involve Pharmacokinetics and Pharmacodynamics General Principles and Concepts of Veterinary Pharmacology and Toxicology Cont … Pharmacodynamics is the study of cell/tissue responses and selective receptor effects. The significant difference in veterinary pharmacology is the species variations that need to be considered These variations have significant influence on pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of veterinary medicines Toxicology is the study of poison and their effects on normal physiologic mechanisms General Principles and Concepts of Veterinary Pharmacology and Toxicology Cont … It is important to understand the more commonly encountered toxins and to treat affected animals accordingly When treating an intoxicated animal, the general rule to remember is that, “ treat the animal not the poison ” Toxicity is the quality of being poisonous (dose of poison that elicits a response) Toxicosis is the clinical syndrome associated with exposure to a poison e.g. acetaminophen toxicosis General Principles and Concepts of Veterinary Pharmacology and Toxicology Cont … Toxins that affect the more commonly domestic species are extremely diverse The types of toxins often encountered include; Metals, mycotoxins , feed-related intoxications, pharmaceutical agents, pesticides (insecticides, herbicides), biotoxins (plants, poisononous animals and insects, bacterial toxins) For toxicosis to occur, there must be a dose-related response, the greater the dose the more likely that toxicosis will occur General Principles and Concepts of Veterinary Pharmacology and Toxicology Cont … Some toxins exhibit a steep dose-response relationship and are considered highly toxic To cause intoxication, a substance must be absorbed and delivered to the site of action at a concentration high enough to elicit a physiologic response e.g. presence of a poisonous plant in a pasture is not enough; there must be evidence of consumption of these plants Different animals in a herd may consume different plants or forage There are individual and species variations in susceptibility to toxins The clinical signs observed must correlate with the suspect plant General Principles and Concepts of Veterinary Pharmacology and Toxicology Cont … Toxicokinetics This is the study of the metabolic processes that occur after exposure to a toxin (absorption, distribution, biotransformation, and elimination) It involves the mathematical description of the movement of a toxin into the body (absorption), to the target organs (distribution) and out of the body (elimination) Concentration of a toxin at the site of action depends on; Dose, physicochemical properties of the toxin or drug, absorption, distribution, specific tissue affinity, rate of metabolism, rate of elimination General Principles and Concepts of Veterinary Pharmacology and Toxicology Cont … The fate after exposure to toxins is influenced by; Toxins or drug factors Host factors or physiologic factors There are animal factors including age, organ perfusion, organ function (hepatic, renal), membrane permeability, pH of tissue or compartment, species and gastrointestinal anatomy and physiology Activity: Small Group Discussion What is pharmacokinetics? General Principles and Concepts of Veterinary Pharmacology and Toxicology Cont … Pharmacokinetics is the study of drug absorption, distribution, biotransformation (metabolism), and excretion Pharmacokinetic processes affect the route of administration, doses, dose intervals, and toxicities of drugs given to animals The following are the importance's of Veterinary Pharmacology Helps in understanding the mechanism of action of veterinary medicines Helps in the determination of correct indication and dosage of veterinary medicines Helps to identify and respond to drug interactions, contraindications and adverse drug reactions related to veterinary medicines accordingly Helps in understanding of the disposition processes in the body including absorption, distribution, metabolism and elimination of veterinary medicines These will help students learning veterinary pharmacology to dispense right drug to the right animal, at right dose, by right route and at right time Key Points Veterinary pharmacology is the study of medicines which are used in animals, poultry and fish Principles and Concepts of Veterinary Pharmacology includes pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics Veterinary Pharmacology is important in the pharmacological treatment of veterinary diseases Toxicology is the study of poison and their effects on normal physiologyic mechanisms Evaluation What is veterinary pharmacology? What are principles and concepts of veterinary pharmacology? What is importance of veterinary pharmacology? What is toxicology? References Riviere J. E., Papich M. G. (2009). Veterinary Pharmacology and Therapeutics (9th Ed) Iowa, Wiley- Blackwel Publishers Hsu W. H. (2008). Handbook of Veterinary Pharmacology (1st Ed) Iowa, Wiley- Blackwel Publishers Kuafmann J, (1996). Parasitic infections of domestic animals , (2nd ed ).Berlin, Birkhäuser Verlag Press Hoare E. W. (2013). A manual veterinary therapeutics & pharmacology (2nd ed ),New York, Forgotten Books Press Maddison . J. ( ed ) (2008 ). Small Animal Clinical Pharmacology , (2nd ed ). Philadelphia, Saunders Elsevier Limited PST 06107 Basic Veterinary Pharmacology Session 2: Variation
