Pharmacology Fundamentals
How drugs work, look, and behave in the body.
Module overview
Medications make up the largest single PTCE domain (~40%). You'll learn how drugs are categorized, the top brand/generic pairs, the major routes of administration, and the side-effect patterns that drive patient questions.
What you'll learn
- 01Drug classifications and therapeutic uses
- 02Brand vs generic medications
- 03Medication routes and dosage forms
- 04Common side effects and interactions
Lessons
Pharmacokinetics in plain English
ADME — Absorption, Distribution, Metabolism, Excretion — describes what the body does to a drug.
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Major drug classes you must know
Suffix patterns reveal class for many drugs — learn them and you can identify hundreds of medications at a glance.
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Brand vs generic
Generics contain the same active ingredient, strength, dosage form, and route as the brand and must demonstrate bioequivalence.
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Routes and dosage forms
Route and form determine onset, duration, patient tolerance, and pharmacist counseling needs.
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Key terms
- Bioavailability
- Fraction of the dose that reaches systemic circulation unchanged.
- Half-life (t½)
- Time required for plasma drug concentration to decrease by 50%.
- AB-rated
- FDA designation that a generic is therapeutically equivalent and substitutable for the brand.
- Narrow therapeutic index
- Small difference between effective and toxic dose — requires close monitoring.
Study tool
Flashcards
01 / 16
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Practice questions
- Q1What is the brand name for atorvastatin?
- Q2Which suffix identifies an ACE inhibitor?
- Q3Which dosage form should never be crushed?
Weekly study rhythm
- • Watch the module lecture video
- • Complete guided notes and flashcards
- • Take the end-of-lesson quiz
- • Practice pharmacy calculations daily
- • Take a mock exam every two modules