Reflex Action of Medicinal Substances

The reflex action of drugs is a mechanism in which the effect of drugs on the body causes a response of certain nervous structures or somatic tissues. This response to therapy is an immediate response and consists of an increase in the tone of the muscular system, increased blood flow and dilation of peripheral vessels, a decrease in blood pressure and pain sensitivity, etc.

The primary response structures involved may include vascular(s), muscular, and autonomic mechanisms. At the same time, the participation of both central and peripheral structures of the nervous system, structures of the spinal cord, ganglia, and brain stem is possible. As a rule, the reaction of each of these mechanisms can not only be enhanced by the action of the drug, but also inhibited. It should be noted that in many ways it is the interaction of these systems that forms the basis of the action of all therapeutic agents.

The variety of manifestations and mechanisms of the reflex of the influence of medicinal substances determines the variety of their actions, and the wide range of reflexes of organs and tissues explains the variety of effects from therapy with these substances. The presence of a powerful unconscious response mechanism makes the treatment process and drug therapy completely independent of the doctor’s degree of knowledge about the mechanism of the disease. The medicinal substances themselves are responsible only for the choice of the active principle, while the disease itself determines the degree and duration of their therapeutic effect. Thus, the medicine, by irritating the reflex zones of the body, leads to the desired results.

Such drugs can be used to regulate the activity of the autonomic centers of the nervous system during pregnancy.