Fundamentals of Pharmacology for Veterinary Technicians 1
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FUNDAMENTALS OF PHARMACOLOGY FOR VETERINARY TECHNICIANS 1, by THOMPSON
DELMAR LEARNING
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Fundamentals of Pharmacology
for Veterinary Technicians
Chapter 1
A Brief History of Veterinary
Pharmacology
© 2004 by Thomson Delmar Learning, a part of the Thomson Corporation.
A History of Veterinary
Pharmacology
• Origins of veterinary pharmacology date
back to the early 1700s in Europe
• Study of the physical and chemical
characteristics of materials used as
medicine is known as materia medica
• Scientists extracted and synthesized
drugs from plant components, bacteria,
and animal sources
• Today most drugs are made synthetically
in laboratories
© 2004 by Thomson Delmar Learning, a part of the Thomson Corporation
Understanding Pharmacological
Terms
• Pharmaco- means drug
– Pharmacology is the study of drugs
• Therapy means treatment of disease
– Pharmacotherapy is the treatment of disease
with medicines
• Kinetics is the scientific study of motion
– Pharmacokinetics is the study of drug motion,
which includes absorption, blood levels,
distribution, metabolism, and excretion of
drugs
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Drug Regulation
• The Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
became a government agency to enforce the
federal Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906
• Until the late 1930s, the FDA had little power to
determine and enforce correct drug dosage
information
• In 1938, Congress passed the federal Food,
Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FDCA), which required
that a drug be adequately tested to demonstrate
its safety when used as its label directs
• In 1972, the FDCA was amended to include
many more protections
© 2004 by Thomson Delmar Learning, a part of the Thomson Corporation
Drug Regulation
• The FDA is headed by a commissioner and
organized into a number of different centers
• The FDA’s Center for Veterinary Medicine
(CVM) ensures that approved veterinary
medicines will not harm animals
• The 1972 amendments to the FDCA made
drug manufacturers specify drug withdrawal
periods and detection methods for
determining drug residues in animal
foodstuffs
© 2004 by Thomson Delmar Learning, a part of the Thomson Corporation
Prescription Drugs
• Prescription drugs are regulated by the FDA and
are limited to use under the supervision of a
veterinarian or physician, because of their
potential danger, toxicity concerns, administration
difficulty, or other considerations
• Prescription drugs are prescribed to animals
once a veterinarian/client/patient relationship has
been established
– Veterinarian/client/patient relationships arise when an
animal is seen and examined by a veterinarian who
assumes responsibility for making clinical assessments
based on sufficient knowledge about the animal’s health
© 2004 by Thomson Delmar Learning, a part of the Thomson Corporation
Extra-label Drugs
• Extra-label drugs are drugs used in a manner
that is not specifically described on the FDAapproved label
– May include use of a drug for an animal when the drug
is only approved for use in humans
– May include use of a drug for a treatment that is not
listed on the FDA-approved drug label
• Extra-label drug use is allowed under the Animal
Medicinal Drug Use Clarification Act of 1994
(AMDUCA)
– The key constraints of AMDUCA are that any extralabel use must be by or on the order of a veterinarian
within the context of a veterinarian/client/patient
relationship and that the use cannot result in drug
residues in food-producing animals
© 2004 by Thomson Delmar Learning, a part of the Thomson Corporation
Over-the-Counter Drugs
• Over-the-counter drugs (OTC drugs)
are drugs that do not have a
significant potential for toxicity or do
not require special administration
– Aspirin is an example of an OTC drug
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Controlled Substances
• Controlled substances are drugs
considered dangerous because of their
potential for human abuse or misuse
• Controlled substances are regulated by
the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA)
through the Comprehensive Drug Abuse
Prevention and Control Act of 1970
• Controlled substances are labeled at
multiple schedule levels (see Table 1-2)
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Controlled Substance
Monitoring
• Veterinarians who use or prescribe controlled
substances must register annually with the DEA,
keep the DEA informed of all address changes,
and receive a registration number to be used on
all prescriptions and supply orders
• Controlled substances must be stored in a locked
cabinet or safe
• Authorized handlers of controlled substances
must keep records of orders, receipts, uses,
discards, and thefts of controlled substances for
two years following each transaction
– Controlled substance use is usually recorded in a
controlled substance log
© 2004 by Thomson Delmar Learning, a part of the Thomson Corporation