00351 - Pharmacology (AK-B)

Learning outcomes

The course provides knowledge in the following areas:

- basic principles of pharmacology

- pharmacodynamics, pharmacokinetics

- therapeutic use of drugs

- basic principles to understand variability in drug response (genetic factors, concomitant disease, drug interactions, etc.)

- basic principles of clinical pharmacology, pharmacovigilance and pharmacoepidemiology

Course contents

Pharmacokinetics; routes of drug administration; absorption; distribution; drug metabolism; excretion

Pharmacodynamics; agonist and antagonists; dose-response curves; therapeutic index; clinically-relevant drug interactions

Drugs acting on the autonomic nervous system

Drugs used in general anaesthesia

Drugs used in local anaesthesia

Drugs for the treatment of Parkinson's disease

Anticonvulsant agents

Anxiolytic agents

Antidepressant agents

Antipsychotics

Opiates and non-opiate analgesic agents; drug abuse and dependence

Diuretic agents

ACE-inhibitors and angiotensin II receptor antagonists

Beta-adrenoceptor blockers

Calcium channel blockers

Organic nitrates

Digoxin and other inotropic agents

Antiarrhythmic agents

Drugs used for the treatment of dyslipidemias

Anticoagulant and thrombolytic agents; inhibitors of platelet aggregation

Drugs used in the treatment of anemia

Agents used in the treatment of asthma and COPD

Agents used in allergic rhinitis and cough

Agents used in the treatment of peptic ulcer

Antiemetic agents; prokinetics; antidiarrhoeal agents

Glucocorticoids

Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs

Drugs used in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis and gout

Antihistamines; agents used in the treatment of migraine

Drugs used in thyroid dysfunctions

Drugs used in the treatment of diabetes

Oestrogens, progestins and androgens

Agents used in osteoporosis

Antimicrobial agents: classification and general criteria in antibacterial chemotherapy

Antifolic agents

Cell wall synthesis inhibitors

Protein synthesis inhibitors

Quinolones and other agents used in urinary tract infections

Antimycobacterial agents

Antimycotic agents

Drugs used in protozoal diseases; agents used against elminths

Antiviral agents

Readings/Bibliography

1) Goodman and Gilman's Manual of Pharmacology and Therapeutics - SECOND EDITION - Randa Hilal-Dandan, Laurence L. Brunton - McGraw-Hill, 2014

2) Hitchings, Lonsdale, Burrage, Baker. The top 100 drugs. Clinical pharmacology and practical prescribing. 2nd Edition, Elservier, 2019.

Teaching methods

Interactive lectures

Assessment methods

Oral examination to assess achievement of the skills detailed in the learning outcomes (see the Italian version for details)

Teaching tools

Teaching material (access restricted to UNIBO student) can be downloaded through Moodle.

Office hours

See the website of Emanuel Raschi