Exactly what anti-pyretic medicine do in the human body?
Answer:
The drugs used as anti-pyretics are paracetamol (acetaminophen), asprin and other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), and corticosteroids. It is rare to use the corticosteroids for this purpose though, since the others are as good or better and have a far less broad effect on the body.
To understand why antipyretics work, you need to know a little about how fever (pyrexia) comes about.
Techically, any source of inflammation can cause a fever, although the most common and powerful cause is an infection. Inflammation is regulated by small proteins called 'cytokines' which are produced by the immune cells and signal to each other.
So, an inflammatory state is abuzz with buckets full of cytokines in the blood. When the blood reaches the brain, some of the cytokines in it (for what it's worth, especially IL-1, IL-6 and TNF) trigger the release of a substance called prostaglandin E2 from the endothelium near the hypothalamus. This sets off a chain reaction in the brain that raises the body's set point temperature, thus causing fever. Also, microbial toxins (e.g. bacterial cell wall fragments) can do the same as the cytokines by binding to different receptors on the hypothalamic endothelium.
Now for the anti-pyretic medication. Prostaglandin is formed from a cell wall phospholipid, called arachidonic acid. It is 'broken off' the cell wall by an enzyme called phospholipase A2. Corticosteroids inhibit this step.
Thereafter, arachidonic acid be used to form either of two groups of substances. The process of turning it into a prostaglandin is catalysed by the enzyme cyclooxygenase. This enzyme is inhibited by aspirin and the NSAIDs, and by paracetamol (acetaminophen).
Thus, in both cases, prostaglandin E2 production is reduced, lowering the fever.
Hope that helps. It is a bit complicated, but at least it's a logical process. There's a reasonable picture of the pathway I described here: http://www.arthritis.co.za/images/nsb.gi...
Feel free to get in touch if you have further questions.
An anti-pyretic lowers the body temperature - from a fever, for example.
Reduces body temperature.
Lowers the temperature
Antipyretic drugs are drugs that prevent or reduce fever by lowering the body temperature from a raised state. However, they will not affect the normal body temperature if one does not have fever.
Antipyretics cause the hypothalamus to override an interleukin-induced increase in temperature. The body will then work to lower the temperature and the result is a reduction in fever.
Most are also used for other purposes. For example, the most common antipyretics in the United States are aspirin and acetaminophen (Paracetamol), which are used primarily as pain relievers. NSAIDs are antipyretic, anti-inflammatory, and pain relievers. There is some debate over the appropriate use of such medications: fever is part of the body's immune response to infection.
Herbal remedies with a fever-reducing effect are called febrifuges, and include catnip, chamomile, sage and yarrow. However, the term febrifuge can also refer to a refrigerant, such as topical alcohol, which cools the body by physically removing heat rather than modifying the body's responses. This is not recommended now because alcohol can be transferred through the skin and affect the liver
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