Combination therapy
Encyclopedia
Combination therapy or polytherapy is the use of more than one medication
or other therapy. In contrast, monotherapy is any therapy which is taken by itself.
Most often, these terms refer to the simultaneous administration of two or more medication
s to treat a single disease
. However, the expression is also used when other types of therapy are used at the same time, such as the combination of medications and talk therapy to treat depression.
Combination therapy may be achieved by giving separate drugs, or, where available, by giving combination drugs, which are dosage form
s that contain more than one active ingredient
.
Polypharmacy
is the use of multiple medications to treat multiple, separate diseases.
, leprosy
, cancer
, malaria
, and HIV
/AIDS
. One major benefit of combination therapies is that they reduce development of drug resistance
, since a pathogen or tumor is less likely to have resistance to multiple drugs simultaneously. Artemisinin
-based monotherapies for malaria are explicitly discouraged to avoid the problem of developing resistance to the newer treatment.
Combination therapy may seem costlier than monotherapy in the short term, but when used appropriately, it causes significant savings: lower treatment failure rate, lower case-fatality ratios, slower development of resistance and consequently, less money needed for the development of new drugs.
. Normally, monotherapy is selected because a single medication is adequate to treat the medical condition. However, monotherapies may also be used because of unwanted side effects or dangerous drug interaction
s.
Medication
A pharmaceutical drug, also referred to as medicine, medication or medicament, can be loosely defined as any chemical substance intended for use in the medical diagnosis, cure, treatment, or prevention of disease.- Classification :...
or other therapy. In contrast, monotherapy is any therapy which is taken by itself.
Most often, these terms refer to the simultaneous administration of two or more medication
Medication
A pharmaceutical drug, also referred to as medicine, medication or medicament, can be loosely defined as any chemical substance intended for use in the medical diagnosis, cure, treatment, or prevention of disease.- Classification :...
s to treat a single disease
Disease
A disease is an abnormal condition affecting the body of an organism. It is often construed to be a medical condition associated with specific symptoms and signs. It may be caused by external factors, such as infectious disease, or it may be caused by internal dysfunctions, such as autoimmune...
. However, the expression is also used when other types of therapy are used at the same time, such as the combination of medications and talk therapy to treat depression.
Combination therapy may be achieved by giving separate drugs, or, where available, by giving combination drugs, which are dosage form
Dosage form
-Introduction:Dosage forms are a mixture of active drug components and nondrug components. Depending on the method of administration they come in several types. These are liquid dosage form, solid dosage form and semisolid dosage forms. A Liquid dosage form is the liquid form of a dose of a...
s that contain more than one active ingredient
Active ingredient
An active ingredient is the substance of a pharmaceutical drug or a pharmaceutical ingredient and bulk active in medicine; in pesticide formulations active substance may be used. Some medications and pesticide products may contain more than one active ingredient...
.
Polypharmacy
Polypharmacy
Polypharmacy is the use of multiple medications by a patient, especially when too many forms of medication are used by a patient, when more drugs are prescribed than is clinically warranted, or even when all prescribed medications are clinically indicated but there are too many pills to take ....
is the use of multiple medications to treat multiple, separate diseases.
Uses for combination therapy
Conditions treated with combination therapy include tuberculosisTuberculosis
Tuberculosis, MTB, or TB is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body...
, leprosy
Leprosy
Leprosy or Hansen's disease is a chronic disease caused by the bacteria Mycobacterium leprae and Mycobacterium lepromatosis. Named after physician Gerhard Armauer Hansen, leprosy is primarily a granulomatous disease of the peripheral nerves and mucosa of the upper respiratory tract; skin lesions...
, cancer
Cancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
, malaria
Malaria
Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease of humans and other animals caused by eukaryotic protists of the genus Plasmodium. The disease results from the multiplication of Plasmodium parasites within red blood cells, causing symptoms that typically include fever and headache, in severe cases...
, and HIV
HIV
Human immunodeficiency virus is a lentivirus that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome , a condition in humans in which progressive failure of the immune system allows life-threatening opportunistic infections and cancers to thrive...
/AIDS
AIDS
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...
. One major benefit of combination therapies is that they reduce development of drug resistance
Drug resistance
Drug resistance is the reduction in effectiveness of a drug such as an antimicrobial or an antineoplastic in curing a disease or condition. When the drug is not intended to kill or inhibit a pathogen, then the term is equivalent to dosage failure or drug tolerance. More commonly, the term is used...
, since a pathogen or tumor is less likely to have resistance to multiple drugs simultaneously. Artemisinin
Artemisinin
Artemisinin , also known as Qinghaosu , and its derivatives are a group of drugs that possess the most rapid action of all current drugs against falciparum malaria. Treatments containing an artemisinin derivative are now standard treatment worldwide for falciparum malaria...
-based monotherapies for malaria are explicitly discouraged to avoid the problem of developing resistance to the newer treatment.
Combination therapy may seem costlier than monotherapy in the short term, but when used appropriately, it causes significant savings: lower treatment failure rate, lower case-fatality ratios, slower development of resistance and consequently, less money needed for the development of new drugs.
Uses for monotherapy
Monotherapy can be applied to any therapeutic approach, but it is most commonly used to describe the use of a single medicationMedication
A pharmaceutical drug, also referred to as medicine, medication or medicament, can be loosely defined as any chemical substance intended for use in the medical diagnosis, cure, treatment, or prevention of disease.- Classification :...
. Normally, monotherapy is selected because a single medication is adequate to treat the medical condition. However, monotherapies may also be used because of unwanted side effects or dangerous drug interaction
Drug interaction
A drug interaction is a situation in which a substance affects the activity of a drug, i.e. the effects are increased or decreased, or they produce a new effect that neither produces on its own. Typically, interaction between drugs come to mind...
s.
See also
- PolypillPolypillA polypill is a medication that is a combination drug of multiple active ingredients, and that is aimed to be consumed widespread in the population, even currently healthy ones, as a means of preventive medicine...
, a medication which contains a combination of multiple active ingredients