What does "therapeutic range" signify?

Therapeutic range defines the specific concentration range in which a drug is most effective at producing its desired therapeutic effects without causing significant adverse effects. This range is critical in pharmacology because it helps healthcare providers determine appropriate dosing regimens to ensure that the drug achieves optimal efficacy while minimizing the risk of toxicity.

Understanding the therapeutic range is essential for medications with narrow therapeutic indices, where small variations in drug concentration can lead to serious side effects or inadequate therapeutic response. By maintaining drug levels within the therapeutic range, clinicians can effectively manage patient care and enhance treatment outcomes.

Other concepts mentioned, such as the duration a drug remains effective in the body, minimum doses for efficacy, or the levels associated with toxicity, represent different aspects of pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics but do not capture the comprehensive definition of therapeutic range.