Defining Pharmacovigilance And Reviewing Its History

Pharmacovigilance (PV) is defined by the World Health Organization (WHO) as the science and activities relating to the detection, assessment, understanding, and prevention of adverse effects or any other drug-related problem. PV focuses on adverse drug reactions, or ADRs, which are defined as any response to a drug which is noxious and unintended, including lack of efficacy.

Ultimately, PV is concerned with identifying the hazards associated with pharmaceutical products and with minimizing the risk of any harm that may come to patients. Sounds simple enough, but the process that pharmaceutical companies go through to satisfy this requirement is rather complex.

Learn about Pharmacovigilance, a brief history of PV, and more.