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Amiodarone is an antiarrhythmic medication used to treat and prevent a number of types of cardiac dysrhythmias. [4] This includes ventricular tachycardia, ventricular fibrillation, and wide complex tachycardia, atrial fibrillation, and paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia. [4]
In pharmacokinetics, a loading dose is an initial higher dose of a drug that may be given at the beginning of a course of treatment before dropping down to a lower maintenance dose. [ 1 ] A loading dose is most useful for drugs that are eliminated from the body relatively slowly, i.e. have a long systemic half-life .
Amiodarone has mostly Class III activity, but also I, II, & IV activity [6] Prevent paroxysmal atrial fibrillation [7] and haemodynamically stable ventricular tachycardia [8] (amiodarone) Treat atrial flutter and atrial fibrillation (ibutilide) Treat ventricular tachycardia and atrial fibrillation (sotalol) Treat Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome; IV
Intraosseous access has roughly the same absorption rate as IV access, and allows for fluid resuscitation. For example, sodium bicarbonate can be administered IO during a cardiac arrest when IV access is unavailable. [1] High flow rates are attainable with an IO infusion, up to 125 milliliters per minute.
For this reason, drugs with a long half-life (e.g., amiodarone, elimination t 1 / 2 of about 58 days) are usually started with a loading dose to achieve their desired clinical effect more quickly.
Amiodarone is also safe to use in individuals with cardiomyopathy and atrial fibrillation, to maintain normal sinus rhythm. Amiodarone prolongation of the action potential is uniform over a wide range of heart rates, so this drug does not have reverse use-dependent action. Amiodarone was the first agent described in this class. [4]
Extravasation is the leakage of intravenously (IV) infused, and potentially damaging, medications into the extravascular tissue around the site of infusion. The leakage can occur through brittle veins in the elderly, through previous venipuncture access, or through direct leakage from wrongly positioned venous access devices.
Intravenous therapy (abbreviated as IV therapy) is a medical technique that administers fluids, medications and nutrients directly into a person's vein.The intravenous route of administration is commonly used for rehydration or to provide nutrients for those who cannot, or will not—due to reduced mental states or otherwise—consume food or water by mouth.