Aspects of the relationship between drug dose and drug effect

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Abstract

It is generally assumed that there exists a well-defined relationship between drug dose and drug effect and that this can be expressed by a dose-response curve. This paper argues that there is no such clear relation and that the dose-response curve provides only limited information about the drug effect. It is demonstrated that tolerance development during the measurement of the dose-response curve may cause major distortion of the curve and it is argued that the curve may only be used to indicate the response to the first administration of a drug, before tolerance has developed. The precise effect of a drug on an individual depends on the dynamic relation between several variables, particularly the level of tolerance, the dose anticipated by the organism and the actual drug dose. Simulations with a previously published mathematical model of drug tolerance demonstrate that the effect of a dose smaller than the dose the organism has developed tolerance to is difficult to predict and may be opposite to the action of the usual dose. Copyright © 2009 University of Massachusetts.

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APA

Peper, A. (2009). Aspects of the relationship between drug dose and drug effect. Dose-Response, 7(2), 172–192. https://doi.org/10.2203/dose-response.08-019.peper

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