Chemoprevention (also<unk>  refers to the administration of a medication for the purpose of preventing disease or infection. Antibiotics, for example, may be administered to patients with disorders of immune system function to prevent bacterial infections (particularly opportunistic infection). Antibiotics may also be administered to healthy individuals to limit the spread of an epidemic, or to patients who have repeated infections (such as urinary tract infections) to prevent recurrence. It may also refer to the administration of heparin to prevent deep venous thrombosis in hospitalized patients. In some cases,<unk>  is initiated to prevent the spread of an existing infection in an individual to a new organ system, as when intrathecal chemotherapy is administered in patients with malignancy to prevent further infection. The use of<unk>  is limited primarily by two factors: risk and financial costs. *All medications have the potential to cause side effects. In general,<unk>  should be initiated only when the benefits of treatment outweigh the risks. *The cost associated with<unk>  may be prohibitive, particularly when the cost of treatment is high or the incidence of the target disease is low. Many forms of<unk>  are therefore not cost-effective.
Chemoprophylaxis
Antibiotic prophylaxis
Thrombolysis
Placebo analgesia
Premedication
Infusion therapy
Fibrinolysis
Preventive analgesia