| drug | 1. Any animal, vegetable, or mineral substance used in the composition of medicines; any stuff used in dyeing or in chemical operations. "Whence merchants bring" "Their spicy drugs." 2. Any commodity that lies on hand, or is not salable; an article of slow sale, or in no demand. "But sermons are mere drugs." "And virtue shall a drug become." (Dryden) Origin: F. Drogue, prob. Fr. D. Droog; akin to E. Dry; thus orig, dry substance, hers, plants, or wares. See Dry. To prescribe or administer drugs or medicines. Origin: Cf. F. Droguer. Source: Websters Dictionary (01 Mar 1998) |
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| drug abuse | Use of a drug for a reason other than which it was intended or in a manner or in quantities other than directed. Drug dependence is a compulsion to take a drug to produce a desired effect or prevent unpleasant effects when the drug is withheld. Risk factors for drug abuse include: low self esteem, inability to deal with stress and emotional instability. Juveniles use drugs due to peer pressure. Signs of drug use in children include: a change in friends or group, long absences from home, poor performance in school, seclusion, stealing, lying, criminal behaviour, deteriorating family relationships, signs of drug intoxication and changes in behaviour. Commonly abused drugs include narcotic analgesic agents, benzodiazepines, cocaine, amphetamines, barbiturates, marijuana, LSD and phencyclidine. Many labs now offer quick and inexpensive urine drug screening. Psychological counseling and parental support will be necessary in children with this problem. (27 Sep 1997) |
| drug activity | A measure of the physiological response a drug produces. A less active drug produces less response (and visa versa). (12 Dec 1998) |
| drug addiction | Use of a drug for a reason other than which it was intended or in a manner or in quantities other than directed. Drug dependence is a compulsion to take a drug to produce a desired effect or prevent unpleasant effects when the drug is withheld. Risk factors for drug abuse include: low self esteem, inability to deal with stress and emotional instability. Juveniles use drugs due to peer pressure. Signs of drug use in children include: a change in friends or group, long absences from home, poor performance in school, seclusion, stealing, lying, criminal behaviour, deteriorating family relationships, signs of drug intoxication and changes in behaviour. Commonly abused drugs include narcotic analgesic agents, benzodiazepines, cocaine, amphetamines, barbiturates, marijuana, LSD and phencyclidine. Many labs now offer quick and inexpensive urine drug screening. Psychological counseling and parental support will be necessary in children with this problem. (27 Sep 1997) |
| drug administration routes | The various ways of administering a drug or other chemical to a site in a patient or animal from where the chemical is absorbed into the blood and delivered to the target tissue. (12 Dec 1998) |
| drug administration schedule | Time schedule for administration of a drug in order to achieve optimum effectiveness and convenience. (12 Dec 1998) |
| drug allergy | Sensitivity (hypersensitivity) to a drug or other chemical. (05 Mar 2000) |
| drug and narcotic control | Control of drug and narcotic use by international agreement, or by institutional systems for handling prescribed drugs. This includes regulations concerned with the manufacturing, dispensing, approval (drug approval), and marketing of drugs. (12 Dec 1998) |
| drug, antihypertensive | As the name clearly implies, a drug aimed at reducing high blood pressure (hypertension). (12 Dec 1998) |
| drug, anti-infective | A medication capable of acting against infection, by inhibiting the spread of an infectious agent or by killing the infectious agent outright. (12 Dec 1998) |
| drug approval | Process that is gone through in order for a drug to receive approval by a government regulatory agency. This includes any required pre-clinical or clinical testing, review, submission, and evaluation of the applications and test results, and post-marketing surveillance of the drug. (12 Dec 1998) |
| drug carriers | Substances that facilitate time-controlled delivery, organ-specific targeting, protection, prolonged in vivo function, and decrease of toxicity of drugs. Liposomes, albumin microspheres, soluble synthetic polymers, DNA complexes, protein-drug conjugates, and carrier erythrocytes among others have been employed as biodegradable drug carriers. (12 Dec 1998) |
| drug combinations | Single preparations containing two or more active agents, for the purpose of their concurrent administration as a fixed dose mixture. It is differentiated from drug therapy, combination in which two or more drugs are administered separately for a combined effect. (12 Dec 1998) |
| drug compounding | The preparation, mixing, and assembling of a drug. (12 Dec 1998) |
| drug costs | The amount that a health care institution or organization pays for its drugs. It is one component of the final price that is charged to the consumer (fees, pharmaceutical or prescription fees). (12 Dec 1998) |