Wk 5 Anti-Anginal Medications Review

Vocabulary and key concepts from the lecture on angina types, nitrate administration, beta blockers, and calcium channel blockers.

Unstable Angina

A condition where symptoms increase and chest pain begins to occur during rest or sleep, indicating that blood flow to the heart muscle is significantly compromised.

Variant (Prinzmetal) Angina

Chest pain caused by a vasospasm in the coronary arteries, typically occurring for a short period in the middle of the night or morning.

Troponin

A cardiac marker used during assessment to identify injury to the heart muscle; levels can elevate significantly during an infarction.

Nitroglycerin

A vasodilator that decreases myocardial workload and oxygen demand while increasing oxygen supply to allow cardiac muscle perfusion.

Erectile Dysfunction Medications

A class of medication that is contraindicated with nitrates like nitroglycerin because the combination can cause extreme hypotension and potential injury.

Nitrate Storage Requirements

Medications must be kept in their original bottle because they are light-sensitive and should be stored in a cool, dry place instead of the bathroom.

Amyl Nitrate

An older variation of nitrate medication used for decreasing chest pain, though less commonly seen than isosorbide dinitrates or mononitrates.

Sublingual Nitroglycerin Protocol

Patients should take one tablet every $5$ minutes for a total of $3$ doses; if pain persists after the third dose, emergency services should be contacted.

Transdermal Patch Instruction

The patch should be applied in the morning and removed at night to allow for a $12$-hour drug-free period to avoid developing medication tolerance.

Beta Blockers

Medications like atenolol, metoprolol, and propranolol that counteract the sympathetic nervous system to decrease heart rate, blood pressure, and workload.

Hypoglycemia Masking

A risk associated with beta blockers where they hide the sympathetic nervous system signs of low blood sugar in diabetic patients.

Calcium Channel Blockers

A group of drugs including diltiazem and nifedipine that block calcium in skeletal and cardiac muscle to decrease spasms, primarily used for Variant or Prinzmetal angina.

Ranolazine (Ranexa)

A piperazine acetamide used for chronic chest pain that may help decrease glucose levels and the incidence of ventricular dysrhythmias.

Nitroglycerin IV Onset

The route of administration where the onset occurs in $1$ to $2$ minutes and effects last for $3$ to $5$ minutes.

NSAIDs and Beta Blockers Interaction

Drugs that can decrease the antihypertensive effects of beta blockers due to the retention of sodium and water.