Which statement describes pharmacokinetics?

Which statement describes pharmacokinetics?

• A. How the body processes a drug
• B. The economic cost of a drug
• C. The cultural beliefs about a drug
• D. How a drug affects the body

Answer: (A)

Pharmacokinetics describes how the body processes a drug, including absorption into the bloodstream, distribution to tissues, metabolism (often in the liver), and elimination from the body. This focus on what the body does to the drug is why the statement about how the body processes a drug is the best choice. It contrasts with pharmacodynamics, which is about what the drug does to the body. The other ideas aren’t about the body’s handling of the drug: economic cost is about pharmacoeconomics, and cultural beliefs about a drug relate to social or cultural factors. The notion of how a drug affects the body corresponds to pharmacodynamics, not pharmacokinetics.

Pharmacokinetics describes how the body processes a drug, including absorption into the bloodstream, distribution to tissues, metabolism (often in the liver), and elimination from the body. This focus on what the body does to the drug is why the statement about how the body processes a drug is the best choice. It contrasts with pharmacodynamics, which is about what the drug does to the body.

The other ideas aren’t about the body’s handling of the drug: economic cost is about pharmacoeconomics, and cultural beliefs about a drug relate to social or cultural factors. The notion of how a drug affects the body corresponds to pharmacodynamics, not pharmacokinetics.