Side Effects of Prescription Medicine
Prescription medicine is composed of generic drugs and brand name drugs prescribed by a doctor. The side effects generally fit into four categories; however, side effects can also be caused by the abuse of prescription medicine.
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Definition
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Side effects are undesirable secondary effects that occur along with the desired therapeutic effects of a drug. Side effects can vary according to a person's age, weight, ethnicity, gender, overall health and the state of the disease being treated.
Categories
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Side effects from taking prescription medicine can be mild to severe and generally fit into one of these four categories: most common, common, least common and rare.
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Occurrence
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Side effects may occur when beginning a drug, decreasing or increasing the amount of the dosage, or when ending the prescribed drug regimen.
Abuse
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Side effects can also occur when prescription drugs are abused. Pain killers are the most commonly abused drugs. In small doses, side effects of pain killers are drowsiness, nausea, dizziness and slow breathing. In large doses, pain killers can be lethal.
Warning
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Many side effects of a drug may not be known and, therefore, have not yet been reported. Your health care specialist should be consulted if you experience additional drug side effects.
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References
- Photo Credit Image by Flickr.com, courtesy of Lee Nachtigal
