Lecture 16: Pharmacology of LOCAL anesthetics Flashcards
What are local anesthetics?
Reversibly block nerve conduction
Act on every type of nerve fiber
Act on cardiac, skeletal muscle and brain
No structural damage to nerve cell
What is purpose of local anesthetic?
To operate on awake patient without pain
To suture without pain
To do painful procedures without pain
What is the “ideal” local anesthetic?
Nonirritating to the tissue to which it is applied
Short onset
Long enough duration, but not too long as to entail a prolonged recovery period
What is the general overall chemical structure of local anesthetics?
- Aromatic group
- Intermediate group
- Tertiary Amine
Weak base
How can you tell the difference between amides and ester anesthetics?
Use generic name
Two “I’s’ = amide
One “I” = ester
What enantiomer is the best therapeutically?
S for Sexy
Where does local anesthetic bind once it is in the blood stream?
Local anesthetics bind to the alpha subunit of SODIUM CHANNELS
What is the mechanism of local anesthetics?
Blocks membrane permeability to NA by crossing the membrane and
Binds to the INTERNAL membrane of the sodium channel
Binds only in the OPEN and INACTIVATED state
-so does not bind when in closed state (which makes sense)
-ionic gradient/resting membrane potential is unchanged
What happens when local anesthetic is injected into an acidic medium like an abscess?
Anesthetics are basic…so when coupled with acidic medium, it would not be able to cross the membrane
What effects do local anesthetics potentiate?
- Decreased the amplitude of the AP
- Slow the rate of depolarization
- Increase the firing threshold
- Slow impulse conduction
- Prolong the refractory period
What are the pharmokinetics of local anesthetics?
- local anesthetics bind in the blood of alpha 1-glycoprotein and albumin
- considerable first-pass uptake of local anesthetics by the lung
- local anesthetics enter the blood stream by
- direct injection
- absorption (epinephrine)
What is the significance of alpha 1-glycoprotein and albumin?
The proteins in blood that bind to local anesthetic
What is the distribution of local anesthetics
- Alpha phase = rapidly redistributed to well-perfused tissue
- primarily goes to alpha phase
- Beta phase = less perfused or slowly equilibrating tissue
- Gamma phase = clearance representing metabolism and excretion
Which of the following organs is at the greatest risk of toxicity from an overdose of local anesthetic?
Brain
Because it is a well perfused tissue
Where are esters metabolized?
Hydrolyzed in the plasma by pseudocholinesterase
-breakdown product = para-aminobenzoicacid
Risk of ester toxicity is much les
-can lead to PABA allergy
What is pseudocholinesterase?
The enzyme in the plasma that breaks down esters
What is para-aminobenzoic acid (PABA)?
The breakdown product of esters
Can lead to ALLERGIES
PABA is an allergen
Where are amides metabolized?
Occurs in the LIVER, specifically in the ER of the hepatocytes
-tertiary amines are metabolized into secondary amines that are then hydrolyzed by amidases
A patient with end-stage liver disease is most susceptible to local anesthetic toxicity from which local anesthetic?
bupivacaine (amides)
Because amides are broken down in liver
What is the lipid:water partition coefficient?
How much more soluble a local anesthetic is in fat vs. water
The higher the coefficient, the greater the potency
E.g. bupivacaine = 27.3 and lidocaine = 2.9…so bupivacaine is more potent but slower onset
What is the lipid:water partition coefficient?
How much more soluble a local anesthetic is in fat vs. water
The higher the coefficient, the greater the potency
E.g. bupivacaine = 27.3 and lidocaine = 2.9…so bupivacaine is more potent but slower onset
Why do you choose lidocaine vs. bupivacaine when applying a local anesthetic prior to suturing?
Because lidocaine has a faster onset
Why do you choose lidocaine vs. bupivacaine when applying a local anesthetic prior to suturing?
Because lidocaine has a faster onset
How do you know if something has a faster response?
The closer to the body pH of 7.4
We want more drugs to be in the UNIONIZED form (because basic vs. acidic)
How do you know if something has a faster response?
The closer to the body pH of 7.4
We want more drugs to be in the UNIONIZED form (because basic vs. acidic)
A newly discovered local anesthetic was found to have a pKa of 7.4. What percent of anesthetic will be unionized in the plasma?
50% (because 50/50 = log 1 = 0)
A newly discovered local anesthetic was found to have a pKa of 7.4. What percent of anesthetic will be unionized in the plasma?
50% (because 50/50 = log 1 = 0)
A 22 yo sexually active man presented with recurrent erythmatoous-edamotous dermatitis of shaft of penis. He uses condoms for birth control. What is diagnosis?
PABA allergy
Condoms have benzocaine
A 22 yo sexually active man presented with recurrent erythmatoous-edamotous dermatitis of shaft of penis. He uses condoms for birth control. What is diagnosis?
PABA allergy
Condoms have benzocaine