What are side effects of drugs?

The correct choice identifies side effects of drugs as effects other than the desired medical effects. When a medication is administered, it aims to produce a therapeutic effect, which is the primary reason for its use. However, alongside these desired benefits, drugs can also produce unintended effects, known as side effects. These side effects can range from mild to severe and can affect patients differently based on individual factors such as age, weight, health status, and other medications being taken.

Understanding that side effects are not the primary therapeutic outcomes helps healthcare professionals make informed decisions about a patient's treatment plan. While side effects can sometimes be predictable, they can also include a wide range of unexpected responses caused by the drug interacting with various biological systems in the body.

The other options do not accurately capture the concept of side effects. Desirable effects only relate to the intended therapeutic outcomes, random effects that vary in intensity may describe some variability in drug responses but do not clarify that side effects are different from desired effects. Finally, effects that increase with dosage could be true for some side effects, but the definition of side effects encompasses any unintended effects rather than focusing solely on the dosage relationship.