Definitions

What is Pharmacotherapy importance types of Pharmacotherapy

Pharmacotherapy

Pharmacotherapy is the science that consists of applying medicines to treat diseases It is the base of the pharmaceutical sector, which is dedicated to prescribing medicines to prevent and treat.

Thanks to the development of technology in recent years, more and more progress is being made in the field of pharmacy. Developing new medicines is one of the greatest challenges of the 21st century. Do you want to participate in the pharmacological race to put an end to a multitude of diseases? Train in pharmacology with our training offer and contribute to creating the medicine of the future.

What is the importance of studying pharmacotherapy?

Pharmacotherapy is a pharmaceutical specialty that guarantees the adequate and ideal use of medicines in the prevention and treatment of diseases based on the monitoring and care of the patient. As an essential part of health services, access to medicines is fundamental for the process of comprehensive health care for the individual. Alessandra Silva Rabelo , professor of the Pharmacy course at Tiradentes University , explains that the study of pharmacotherapy aims to meet the needs related to patients, preventing, identifying and solving pathological problems in the face of drug therapies. Always in constant change, Alessandra reiterates the importance of recognizing and maturing the specialty in clinical pharmaceutical practice. 

Many diseases and health problems present new information and symptoms that were not previously described, requiring the pharmacist to be always attentive. “In addition, the search for improvement in pharmacogenetics, where the particularity of the patient shows us that the medicine can have a different clinical response, demanding new approaches in the current treatment”, says Alessandra.

The professor also reports that pharmacotherapy should be practiced by all health professionals who provide direct patient care, so that they can implement a shared care plan. “Today we already have a pharmaceutical office, where professionals can practice clinical pharmacy centered on the patient, so that the patient has the best possible care and finds the best medicine according to his needs”.

Types of pharmacotherapy

Pharmacotherapy is used to alleviate the symptoms of diseases . They are also used to treat and prevent them. There are more and more specific and effective medicines to treat an infinite number of diseases. Science advances at great speed and the entire sector is focused on continuous improvement.

Within pharmacotherapy we can find different types:

Specific therapy or curative therapy

This type of treatment is the one that seeks to eliminate the causes of the disease. An example of this type of medication is antibiotics, which are responsible for eliminating disease-causing agents.

palliative therapy

These treatments aim to alleviate the patient’s symptoms. It does not seek to eradicate the disease, but rather to make the patient feel better and not have pain. These are analgesic drugs such as aspirin or morphine, which have obvious palliative effects.

supportive therapy

It is aimed at maintaining the physical integrity of the patient until he is ready for a more specific or definitive treatment. This type of therapy can also be carried out after stronger treatment and until the patient recovers and therapy is unnecessary.

replacement therapy

This therapy is responsible for providing a substance that normally should already be in the body. However, and due to the disease, the levels of this substance have been altered or eradicated. That is why it must be compensated through pharmacotherapy.

restorative therapy

Its purpose is to recover the health of the patient. It is generally not related to the original disease and is used during the time of convalescence. An example may be the use of sex hormones in those cases in which they are used for their anabolic effects.

Anticipation of pharmacotherapy

Investment in research and development of new drugs has increased exponentially for more than 40 years. Due to the challenge that the coronavirus pandemic has posed and continues to pose, the pharmaceutical sector is in the spotlight.

Advances in science and technology have always gone hand in hand with the pharmaceutical sector. More and more precise, personalized, effective medicines with fewer side effects are being generated thanks to investment in research and development.

Investment in this sector is in the hundreds of millions of euros a year: the question is not when they will get drugs for unusual diseases, but when they will achieve it.

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