What is pharmacology ?
Pharmacology is the science of how drugs act on different biological systems and how the body responds to the drug.

Is it necessary to study pharmacology ?
Yes, pharmacology is a type of subject that connects physiological, pathological and clinical aspects of a disease. Good understanding on the concepts of pharmacology helps in designing a rational prescription. Insufficient pharmacology knowledge will lead to medication errors which may sometimes have very grave consequences on the professional career of a doctor.

Which textbooks should a medical student refer to study pharmacology ?
Every medical student must choose any 1 standard Indian as well as International textbooks. Newer editions of textbooks must be preferred. My recommendations for undergraduate medical students….

Indian textbooks
Essentials of Medical Pharmacology – by KD Tripathy
Pharmacology and Pharmacotherapeutics – by Satoskar
Principles of Pharmacology – by HL Sharma & KK Sharma

International textbooks
Basic and clinical Pharmacology – Katzung BG, Trevor AJ, Master SB
Rang and Dale’s Pharmacology

Is it necessary to know everything given in the pharmacology textbooks ?
Not necessarily, however every medical student must prioritize certain aspects of pharmacology as the student progresses to higher professional years.

MBBS IInd Professional year – Classification of drugs, Mechanism of drug action, Indications, Adverse effects, Interactions.

MBBS IIIrd Professional year Part 1 & Part 2 – Pharmacokinetic properties with respect to different dosage forms, duration of drug action, therapeutic doses, loading dose and maintenance dose of important drugs, contraindications.

MBBS Internship & Post-graduation – Recent advances in pharmacology, with special focus on updated guidelines (WHO / Indian) on communicable and non-communicable diseases, essential drug lists, drugs withdrawn from the market, drug alerts from CDSCO / PvPI.

Can i get more guidance on the pharmacology subject with respect to important drugs to be remembered under drug classification, important clinical indications, important adverse effects, important interactions, important examination questions including MCQs etc ?
Yes, please register to “Pharmacology Module“