Pharmacodynamics and Pharmacokinetics : Pharmacodynamics: Clinical Implications
The concept of pharmacodynamics comprises the body's response to a drug: the biochemical and physiological effects of drugs and the mechanisms of their actions, including the correlation of actions and effects of drugs with their chemical structure; also, such effects on the actions of a particular drug or drugs. Quantifying some PD effects, such as pain perception, can be difficult because of additional PD effects, such as blood pressure.28 Pharmacodynamic differences between the sexes do occur and have important clinical implications, such as serious adverse events or the need to adjust the dose or dosing interval.
The IOM has summarized the clinical relevance of physiological and pharmacological differences between the sexes.29 Sex differences are clinically important when determining the initial dosage of drugs with a narrow therapeutic range. Pharmacodynamic sex differences potentially could be clinically significant with drugs with either wide or narrow therapeutic ranges. These sex differences may be related to the higher incidence of adverse drug reactions in women.
