Cardiovascular Medications Flashcards
Refers to the stopping of blood flow. It is an essential mechanism that protects the body from both external and internal injury.
Is also achieved once a blood clot is formed and the body is protected from excessive hemorrhage.
Hemostasis
Also known as Clotting, this refers to the process by which blood changes from a liquid to a gel, forming a blood clot.
Coagulation
Refers to the series of steps in response to bleeding caused by tissue injury, where each step activates the next and ultimately produces a blood clot.
Coagulation Cascade
What substance does the liver require to make four of the clotting factors?
Vitamin K
Refers to the coagulation pathway that is activated in response to injury.
Intrinsic Pathway
Refers to the coagulation pathway that is activated when blood leaks out of a vessel and enters tissue spaces.
Extrinsic Pathway
Also known as clotting factor I, forms fibrin that binds together platelets and some plasma proteins in a hemostatic plug.
Fibrinogen
Also known as clotting factor II, activates thrombin.
Prothrombin
Is a chemical responsible for converting the clotting factor prothrombin into an enzyme called thrombin
Prothrombin Activator / Prothrombinase
Refers to an enzyme that converts fibrinogen, a plasma protein, to fibrin
Thrombin
What is the approximate time in which normal blood clotting occurs?
6 Minutes
Refers to drugs that are used to prolong bleeding time and thereby prevent blood thrombi from forming or growing larger.
These drugs impart a negative charge to the surface of the platelets, which inhibits the clumping action or aggregation of these cells.
Anticoagulants
Is the traditional drug of choice for parenteral anticoagulation. It is administered intravenously or subcutaneously to achieve a rapid onset of action.
This drug acts by enhancing the actions of antithrombin III. A protein in plasma that inactivates thrombin, and several other procoagulant enzymes, and inhibits coagulation.
Heparin Sodium
Refers to shortened and modified heparin molecules. Are a newer class of drugs related to heparin.
Low-Molecular-Weight-Heparins (LMWHs)
Another name for heparin. Is used to distinguish it from LMWHs
Unfractionated Heparin
What is the action of Heparin? And what is its onset of action?
Heparin binds to Antithrombin III, resulting in the inactivation of several clotting factors and inhibits thrombin activity.
The onset of action for IV Heparin is immediate, whereas subcutaneous heparin may take up to 1 hour to achieve a therapeutic effect
What are some Nursing Interventions for Heparin Sodium?
- Monitor aPPT (Activated partial thromboplastin time)
- Monitor platelet count
- When administering heparins via SC, inject into abdomen with a 25-28 G needle at a 90 degree angle. Do not aspirate once the needle has entered the skin and never massage the site after injection
- Observe for signs of bleeding: gums, bruises, nosebleeds, hematuria, hematemesis, occult blood in stool and petechia
- If aPPT is longer than 80 seconds, lower the dosage, if less than 60 seconds, increase the dosage
Name a contraindication for Heparin Sodium
IM administration is contraindicated due to bleeding risk
What is the antidote for Heparin Sodium?
Protamine Sulfate
What is the normal aPPT? (Activated partial thromboplastin time)
20 - 40 seconds. may vary in different sources, but essentially are within this range
What type of drug is Enoxaparin Sodium?
LMWHs (Low-Molecular-Weight-Heparins)
This drug’s mechanism of action and use are similar to that of heparin, but is not interchangeable. It’s inhibition is more specific to active Factor X and has a longer half-life than heparin.
Enoxaparin Sodium
Refers to the most commonly prescribed oral anticoagulant
Warfarin Sodium
Why do both heparin and warfarin therapy sometimes overlap?
Because unlike heparin that can act either immediately or within an hour, the anticoagulant activity of warfarin can take several days to reach its maximum effect.
What is the action of Warfarin? And what is its onset of action?
Warfarin inhibits the action of vitamin K. Without adequate vitamin K, the synthesis of clotting factors II, VII, IX, and X is diminished.
Because these clotting factors are normally circulating in the blood, it takes several days for their plasma levels to fall and for the anticoagulant effect of warfarin to appear.
What are some Nursing Interventions for Warfarin Sodium?
- Observe for signs of bleeding: bleeding gums, bruises, nosebleeds, hematuria, hematemesis, occult blood in stool, and petechia.
- Instruct patient regarding diet and measures to prevent bleeding.
- If life-threatening bleeding occurs during therapy, the anticoagulant effects of warfarin can be reduced by intramuscular (IM) or subcutaneous administration of its antagonist, Vitamin K1.
What is the antidote for Warfarin Sodium?
Vitamin K
What is the normal INR (International Normalized Ratio) of the average person?
1.3 - 2.0 seconds However, the treatment goal of warfarin sodium is to raise the INR to an appropriate value—2 to 3 seconds. Which is appropriate for most patients
List the anticoagulant drugs that were mentioned in this deck.
- Heparin Sodium
- Enoxaparin Sodium
- Warfarin Sodium
Refers to drugs that promotes the process of fibrinolysis, or clot destruction, by converting plasminogen into plasmin, an enzyme that digests fibrin and breaks it down into small soluble fragments
Thrombolytics
What enzyme digests fibrin, and breaks it down into small soluble fragments?
Plasmin
When are thrombolytics used in the course of MI?
Within 4 to 6 hours of the onset of the infarction.