Methemoglobin levels following sublingual nitroglycerin in human volunteers

Paul M. Paris, Richard M. Kaplan, Ronald D. Stewart, Larry D. Weiss

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

14 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Sublingual nitroglycerin 0.8 mg every five minutes for a total of 4.8 mg was administered to 11 healthy volunteers. One volunteer had to withdraw due to a hypotensive bradycardic reaction after 2.4 mg. In the remaining subjects, methemoglobinemia over the next hour never significantly increased from baseline levels, reaching a peak of only 0.71%. We conclude that commonly used doses of sublingual nitroglycerin do not induce significant methemoglobinemia and that nitroglycerin would not be useful in the treatment of cyanide poisoning.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)171-173
Number of pages3
JournalAnnals of Emergency Medicine
Volume15
Issue number2
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Feb 1986
Externally publishedYes

ASJC Scopus Subject Areas

  • Emergency Medicine

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