Adverse drug reactions examples

London, shows, for example, that every year more than 800,000 patients using the UK National Health Service experience adverse drug reactions [13 and references therein]. 

A major challenge to the development of new drugs is the discovery of new therapeutic targets. For example, the phenomenal success of fluoxetine (Prozac ) has been due to the fact that it was the first selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitor approved for world market release, combined with its improved adverse drug reaction profile. However, no new classes of antidepressants have emerged in recent years. 

There have been several attempts over the years to classify adverse drug reactions, primarily based on the perception of what can and what cannot be predicted given knowledge of the pharmacology and toxicology of the drug. For example, Edwards and Aronson [13] proposed what is probably the most extensive classification system ... 

FIGURE 8.5 Examples of drugs that have aromatic amine or nitro functional groups and are associated with a significant incidence of adverse drug reactions. 

Synonyms of adverse reactions generally include adverse medical effects, untoward effects, side effects, adverse drug experiences, and adverse drug reactions. Specific distinctions among some of these terms may be defined operationally. For example, the term adverse reaction is used to denote those signs and symptoms at least possibly related to a medicine, whereas the term adverse experience is used to include nonmedicine-related medical problems in a trial such as those emanating from trauma or concurrent illness. Distinctions among side effects, adverse events, and adverse reactions are illustrated in the definitions of the two former terms. 

This chapter deals with the concept of biological fingerprints that have been described as a better way to describe compounds of biological interest. It includes examples of how these descriptors are far more powerful than structure-based descriptors in both differentiating compounds and enabling the selection of the best lead compounds, and can provide a way to investigate in vitro-in vivo relationships such as for ADRs (adverse drug reactions). 

The following two examples convey the implications of adverse-drug reaction. They are ... 

Severe, life-threatening diseases, such as cancer require a different drug discovery approach. Safety requirements in most oncology targets tolerate more side effects, which otherwise would severely limit the use of a medicine in other indications. For example, in addition to hair loss, a common side effect of cancer treatment, compounds which affect cell cycle, cell proliferation and apoptosis pathways also cause other serious side effects and make the patient endure severe adverse drug reactions (ADRs). 

Pregnancy and labour are also times of altered drug responsiveness the fetus has special susceptibility to some adverse drug reactions though may be immune to others, for example due to the drug not passing the placenta. 

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