List of Emergency Drugs and their Actions

There are two types of emergency medications. The first group of pharmaceuticals are those that are absolutely necessary and should be included in every emergency drug kit. The second group of medicines includes those that are beneficial but optional, depending on the practitioner's experience with emergency medical operations and whether sedation or general anaesthesia are used for behaviour and anxiety management. As a result, emergency medicine kits will differ from one office to the next.

1. Drug- Aspirin

Dose-

81 mg chewable tablet

Comment-

Chewable tablet, bottle baby aspirin.

2. Drug- Adenosine

Dose-

0.1 mg/Kg

(Max dose: 6 mg) IV

Comment-

Give rapidly

No effect in 2 min:

0.2-0.3 mg/Kg

(Max dose: 12mg)

3. Drug- Albuterol

Dose-

MDI: 4-8 puffs q 20 min with spacer or through ETT

Neb: 2.5 mg (<20 Kg) and 5 mg (> 20 Kg) q 20 min

Continuous Neb: 0.5 mg/Kg/hr

Comment-

Asthma, Anaphylaxis, Hyperkalemia.

4. Drug- Amiodarone

Dose-

5 mg/Kg IV/IO*

Comment-

Give rapid bolus for V. Fib/pulseless VT

Give over 20-60 min for SVT and ventricular dysrhythmias

5. Drug- Atropine

Dose-

0.02 mg/Kg IV

(may give ETT)

Comment-

Max dose: 0.5 mg (child)

1 mg (adolescent).

6. Drug- Calcium Chloride 10%**

Dose-

20 mg/Kg IV

Comment-

Give slowly

(Max. rate 100 mg/min)

Max dose: 1 Gm/dose

Give in central line if available**

7. Drug- Dexamethasone

Dose-

0.6 mg/Kg PO/IM/IV

Comment-

Max dose: 16 mg

8. Drug- Dextrose

Dose-

500 /Kg IV

Comment-

1-2 ml/Kg D50W Child

2-4 ml/Kg D25W Infant

2-3 ml/Kg D10W NICU

9. Drug- Epinephrine (Anaphylaxis)

Dose-

Anaphylaxis

IM: 0.01 mg/Kg

(0.01 ml/Kg) 1:1,000

Comment-

Anaphylaxis Max dose: 0.3 mg or 0.3 ml

10. Drug- Flumazenil

Dose-

0.01 mg/Kg IV

(Max dose: 0.2 mg)

Comment-

Give over 15 seconds

May repeat at 1 minute

intervals up to 4 times

Max total dose: 0.05 mg/

Kg or 1 mg, whichever is lower

11. Drug- Furosemide

Dose-

0.5-1 mg/Kg IV

Comment-

Congestive heart failure

Use lower dose in furosemide naive patients

12. Drug- Insulin (regular)

Dose-

0.05-0.1 Units/Kg bolus

IV or SQ

0.05-0.1 Units/Kg/hr infusion

Comment-

Diabetic Ketoacidosis (Infusion preferred to bolus dosing)

13. Drug- Lidocaine 2%

Dose-

1 mg/Kg IV/IO*

Comment-

May repeat dose in 10-20 min.

14. Drug- Magnesium Sulfate

Dose-

25 mg/Kg IV/IO*

Comment-

Give over 10-20 min; faster in Torsades de Pointes

Max dose: 2 Gm

** Central line preferred.