| drug-drug interaction | The effects that occur when two or more drugs are used together. Such effects include changes of absorption in the digestive tract, changes in rate of the drugs' breakdown in the liver, new or enhanced side effects and changes in the drugs' activity. (09 Oct 1997) |
|---|---|
| radioactive contamination | <radiobiology> Radioactive substance dispersed in material or places where it is undesirable. (16 Dec 1997) |
| contamination | The soiling or pollution by inferior material, as by the introduction of organisms into a wound or sewage into a stream. Origin: L. Contaminatio from con =together + tangere = to touch (18 Nov 1997) |
| cross contamination | <dentistry> Passing bacteria or viruses indirectly from one patient to another through the use of improper sterilisation procedures, unclean instruments, or recycling of products. (08 Jan 1998) |
| specimen contamination | <microscopy> A change in the specimen caused by the condensation upon it of residual vapours in the microscope under the influence of electron bombardment. (05 Aug 1998) |
| direct contamination | <dentistry> Direct contact with impurities or germs. (for example by a patient sneezing on the assistant.) (08 Jan 1998) |
| equipment contamination | The presence of an infectious agent on instruments, prostheses, or other inanimate articles. (12 Dec 1998) |
| food contamination | The presence in food of harmful, unpalatable, or otherwise objectionable foreign substances, e.g. Chemicals, microorganisms or diluents, before, during, or after processing or storage. (12 Dec 1998) |
| abnormalities, drug-induced | Congenital abnormalities caused by medicinal substances or drugs of abuse given to or taken by the mother, or to which she is inadvertently exposed during the manufacture of such substances. The concept excludes abnormalities resulting from exposure to non-medicinal chemicals in the environment. (12 Dec 1998) |
| activity, drug | A measure of the physiological response a drug produces in the body. A less active drug produces less response (and visa versa). (12 Dec 1998) |
| addictive drug | Any drug that creates a certain degree of euphoria and has a strong potential for addiction. (05 Mar 2000) |
| adverse drug reaction reporting systems | Systems developed for collecting reports from government agencies, manufacturers, hospitals, physicians, and other sources on adverse drug reactions. (12 Dec 1998) |
| akathisia, drug-induced | Motor restlessness with sensations of quivering and an urge to move about constantly resulting from the use of certain drugs, such as neuroleptic drugs, which affect the extrapyramidal region of the brain. This differs from dyskinesia, drug-induced in that long-term antipsychotic drug exposure is significantly correlated with the increased prevalence of akathisia while there is no such correlation with dyskinesia. The primary observable distinction between tardive akathisia and dyskinesia appears to be in the repetitive, stereotypy of the dyskinesic movements (lip smacking, for example), while akathisia is associated with anxiety, restlessness, and agitation (psychomotor agitation). (12 Dec 1998) |
| antineoplastic drug | A drug that stops or slows the maturation and spread of tumour cells (benign or malignant). (09 Oct 1997) |
| maintenance drug therapy | In chemotherapy, systematic dosage at a level that maintains protection against exacerbation. (05 Mar 2000) |