Greek Pharmacist License key terms

The fraction of an administered dose of unchanged drug that reaches systemic circulation, expressed as rate and extent. Intravenous dosing defines 100%; oral values depend on absorption and first-pass metabolism.

The demonstration that two pharmaceutical products release the same active substance into the body at a comparable rate and extent, judged by AUC and Cmax within accepted confidence limits, allowing interchangeability of generics.

Metabolism of an orally absorbed drug in gut wall and liver before it reaches systemic circulation, reducing oral bioavailability. It explains why oral doses often exceed intravenous doses of the same substance.

An inactive or less active chemical derivative that is converted in the body, usually by enzymatic hydrolysis or oxidation, into the pharmacologically active agent, typically to improve absorption, stability or targeting.

The systematic relationship between chemical structure features of a molecule, such as functional groups, lipophilicity or stereochemistry, and its biological activity, used to guide rational drug design and optimisation.

The spatial arrangement of chemical features, such as hydrogen-bond donors, acceptors, aromatic rings and charged groups, that a molecule must present to bind a target and produce its biological effect.

A chemical group or molecule with similar size, shape and electronic properties to another, allowing substitution in a drug scaffold while largely preserving activity. Bioisosteric replacement is used to improve potency or stability.

The property of a molecule that is non-superimposable on its mirror image. Enantiomers often differ in receptor affinity, metabolism and toxicity, so stereochemistry matters for dosing and regulatory approval of racemates.

A ligand that binds a receptor and activates it, producing a biological response. Full agonists produce maximal effect; partial agonists produce submaximal effect even at full occupancy.

A ligand that binds a receptor without activating it and blocks the effect of agonists. Competitive antagonists shift agonist dose-response curves rightward; non-competitive antagonists reduce maximal response.

A drug that binds and activates a receptor but produces less than the maximal response of a full agonist, and can act as a functional antagonist when full agonist tone is high.

A measure of drug safety, usually the ratio of the dose producing toxicity to the dose producing the desired effect. A narrow index requires therapeutic drug monitoring and careful dose individualisation.

Measurement of plasma drug concentrations to individualise dosing for drugs with narrow therapeutic indices, such as digoxin, lithium, phenytoin, vancomycin and aminoglycosides, interpreting results with timing and clinical status.

The study of what the body does to a drug over time, described by absorption, distribution, metabolism and excretion, and quantified by parameters such as clearance, volume of distribution and half-life.

An apparent volume relating the amount of drug in the body to its plasma concentration. Large values indicate extensive tissue distribution; it is used to calculate loading doses.

The volume of plasma from which a drug is completely removed per unit time. Total clearance determines the maintenance dose rate needed to sustain a target steady-state concentration.

A harmful and unintended response to a medicinal product used at normal doses for prophylaxis, diagnosis or treatment. ADRs are classified by mechanism, for example dose-related, idiosyncratic or time-dependent reactions.

The science and activities relating to detection, assessment, understanding and prevention of adverse effects or any other drug-related problem, including spontaneous reporting, signal detection and risk management throughout a product's lifecycle.

The process of identifying new or changed safety information suggesting a possible causal association between a medicine and an adverse event, often from disproportionality analysis of spontaneous reports, which then requires clinical evaluation.

A regulatory document submitted at defined intervals after authorisation, summarising worldwide safety data, benefit-risk evaluation and proposed risk-minimisation measures for a medicinal product.

A structured plan describing the safety profile of a medicine, identified and potential risks, and the pharmacovigilance and risk-minimisation activities needed to ensure the benefits outweigh risks in routine use.

A spontaneous reporting scheme in which health professionals and patients report suspected adverse drug reactions to the national competent authority, contributing to post-marketing safety surveillance.

A medicine with the same qualitative and quantitative composition of active substance, same pharmaceutical form and demonstrated bioequivalence to a reference product, marketed after patent and data protection expiry.

The regulatory approval required before a medicinal product may be placed on the market, granted after assessment of quality, safety and efficacy, nationally or through centralised or decentralised European procedures.

The authoritative, regulator-approved information document for prescribers describing indication, posology, contraindications, warnings, interactions, pregnancy data, adverse reactions and pharmaceutical particulars of a medicine.

The user-facing document supplied with a medicine, written in plain language and approved by the regulator, covering what the medicine is, how to take it, possible side effects and storage instructions.

The extent to which a patient takes medicines as agreed with the prescriber, covering timing, dose and duration. Adherence is assessed and supported through counselling, simplification and follow-up.

A patient-centred practice in which the pharmacist takes responsibility for optimising medication therapy, preventing and resolving drug-related problems, and improving health outcomes in collaboration with other professionals.

A structured process of comparing a patient's current medicines with newly prescribed ones at transitions of care, such as admission or discharge, to identify discrepancies, duplications and omissions.

A change in the effect of one medicine caused by another substance, including food, alcohol or herbal products, acting through pharmacokinetic mechanisms such as enzyme inhibition or pharmacodynamic mechanisms such as additive toxicity.

Reduction of cytochrome P450 enzyme activity by a co-administered substance, slowing metabolism of substrate drugs and raising their concentrations, sometimes causing toxicity, as with azole antifungals or macrolides.

Increased expression of drug-metabolising enzymes, typically after repeated exposure to inducers such as rifampicin, carbamazepine or St John's wort, which accelerates substrate metabolism and can cause therapeutic failure.

Any pharmacologically inactive component of a dosage form, such as fillers, binders, disintegrants, preservatives or colourants, included to aid manufacture, stability or patient acceptability, and sometimes causing intolerance.

The preparation of a medicinal product in a pharmacy for an individual patient when no suitable commercial product exists, requiring documented formulas, quality control and adherence to pharmacopoeial standards.

The set of quality-assurance standards ensuring medicinal products are consistently produced and controlled according to quality standards, covering premises, personnel, documentation, validation and quality control.

An official collection of quality standards for medicines, active substances and excipients, including identification, assay and purity tests, legally recognised in the jurisdiction that adopts it.

The study of medicinal substances of natural origin, including plant, fungal and marine sources, covering their identification, chemistry, biological activity, standardisation and therapeutic use.

A compound produced by an organism that is not essential for basic growth but often contributes to defence or ecological interaction, such as alkaloids, terpenoids and flavonoids, many of which have pharmacological activity.

A medicine containing one or more herbal substances, preparations or combinations as active ingredients, regulated with requirements for quality, standardisation and evidence of traditional or established use.

The study of how genetic variation, especially in drug-metabolising enzymes, transporters and targets, influences drug response and toxicity, supporting genotype-guided prescribing decisions.

The coordinated physiological processes that keep the internal environment stable, such as temperature, pH, electrolyte and glucose concentrations, despite changes in the external environment.

The study of the functional changes that accompany disease or injury, explaining how disrupted normal physiology produces signs, symptoms and altered drug handling.

The volume of plasma cleared of a substance by the kidneys per unit time through glomerular filtration, secretion and reabsorption; it falls in kidney impairment and guides dose adjustment of renally eliminated drugs.

A patient's voluntary agreement to a healthcare intervention after receiving and understanding adequate information about its purpose, benefits, risks and alternatives, documented as part of ethical practice.

The pharmacist's duty to keep confidential all information about patients learned in professional practice, disclosing it only with consent or where required by law.

A medicinal product legally restricted to supply against a prescription from an authorised prescriber, because its use requires medical supervision or carries significant risks.