What term describes an unwanted response to a medication?

What term describes an unwanted response to a medication?

• A. Adverse Drug Reaction (ADR)
• B. Therapeutic effect
• C. Adverse event
• D. Medication error

Answer: (A)

An adverse drug reaction describes an unwanted response to a medication. It’s a Harmful or undesired effect that occurs when a drug is used at normal doses for prevention, diagnosis, or treatment, and it’s considered to be caused by the drug itself. This differs from a therapeutic effect, which is the intended beneficial outcome of the medicine. It also differs from an adverse event, which is any unfavorable medical occurrence during treatment, not necessarily caused by the drug. Medication error refers to a preventable mistake in prescribing, dispensing, or administering a drug, which is not an inherent drug reaction. In practice, ADRs can range from mild symptoms like a rash to serious events like anaphylaxis, and older adults are at higher risk due to polypharmacy and age-related changes in drug handling.

An adverse drug reaction describes an unwanted response to a medication. It’s a Harmful or undesired effect that occurs when a drug is used at normal doses for prevention, diagnosis, or treatment, and it’s considered to be caused by the drug itself. This differs from a therapeutic effect, which is the intended beneficial outcome of the medicine. It also differs from an adverse event, which is any unfavorable medical occurrence during treatment, not necessarily caused by the drug. Medication error refers to a preventable mistake in prescribing, dispensing, or administering a drug, which is not an inherent drug reaction. In practice, ADRs can range from mild symptoms like a rash to serious events like anaphylaxis, and older adults are at higher risk due to polypharmacy and age-related changes in drug handling.