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Nutrition and Pharmacotherapy for Disease Management


Course Description

Evidence-based nutrition and pharmacotherapy-based management of diet-related diseases, including obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, cancer, and renal disease.

Additional Requirements for Graduate Students:
Graduate students will have different exams than the undergraduate students in order to document their advanced ability to analyze research-based information. In addition, graduate students will be required to do one of the following to further their advanced skills in critical evaluation of the current literature: 1) in-class presentation of a research- based overview of a selected topic (encouraged for M.S. students) or 2) write a research-based paper that reviews a selected topic in the fields of nutrition and pharmacotherapy (encouraged for Ph.D. students).


Athena Title

Nutr Pharm Dis Mngt


Graduate Prerequisite

NUTR 6400


Undergraduate Pre or Corequisite

NUTR 4530/6530


Semester Course Offered

Not offered on a regular basis.


Grading System

A - F (Traditional)


Course Objectives

Upon completion of the course, students will gain knowledge, competencies, and skills to: • Describe the pathology of selected diseases. • Identify evidence-based guidelines for the management of selected diseases. • Select and explain appropriate pharmacotherapy for selected diseases. • Discuss the mechanisms of action, dosing, precautions/contraindications, and monitoring parameters for efficacy and safety for pharmacologic agents used in therapy of selected diseases. • Name appropriate medication regimens for the treatment of obesity and explain adjustments to pharmacotherapy in disease management of obese patients and after bariatric surgery. • Discuss common drug-nutrient and drug-drug interactions and polypharmacy issues in the management of selected diseases. • Explain adjustments in pharmacotherapy for special populations.


Topical Outline

• Evidence-based guidelines for pharmacotherapy, including mechanisms of action, dosing, precautions/contraindications, and monitoring parameters for agents used in the therapy of selected diseases of the following areas: • Diseases of the endocrine system • Diseases of the cardiovascular system • Neoplastic diseases • Weight management and obesity, including pharmacotherapy adjustments in the disease management of obese patients and after bariatric surgery • Other diseases • Drug-nutrient and drug-drug interactions • Polypharmacy issues in disease management • Considerations of pharmacotherapy for special populations


Syllabus