Advanced pharmacology concepts and clinical applications

Drug Therapy

Advanced pharmacology

Drug therapy: Individualized drug therapies

Patient responses to drug therapy can vary widely between individuals. For example, not all patients find their pain alleviated by the same doses of analgesics; some patients can become suicidal when taking antidepressants rather than find their symptoms eased. It is because of the varied response of individuals, based upon their physical chemistry (as well as their social and psychological needs) that individualized drug therapy is necessary. The social and psychological component, it should be noted, must not be minimized. Some diabetic patients find it very difficult to regulate their blood sugar with a highly complex insulin regime and any modifications which can be made might be extremely helpful in terms of ensuring glucose stability and compliance with treatment.

Another component of different drug response mechanisms is that of allergies. Allergies to penicillin, sulfate drugs, eggs, and other substances are amongst the long list of potentially adverse reactions patients can have with medications that are otherwise harmless to non-sufferers. Thus, the reasons for different responses amongst patients can be extremely varied and difficult to predict. Just as all persons have different genetic makeups, so patients will have different responses.

Clinical drug trials can be helpful in predicting who will and who will not respond in a specific manner to certain drugs. For example, adolescents in particular were found to be prone to suicidal ideation after being prescribed antidepressants. "Following a thorough and comprehensive review of all the available published and unpublished controlled clinical trials of antidepressants in children and adolescents, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a public warning in October 2004 about an increased risk of suicidal thoughts or behavior (suicidality) in children and adolescents treated with SSRI antidepressant medications" ("Antidepressant medications," 2014). The reasons why antidepressants have such an effect upon some adolescents is poorly understood, but the observed effect was significant enough for the FDA to take note.