Adenosine (Adenocard) Nursing Considerations

Hey guys, let’s talk about adenosine, also known as Adenocard. This is an injectable medication by IV bolus, as you can see here in this picture.

Okay. So the therapeutic class is what the drug does to the body. And the pharmacologic class is the chemical action of the drug. adenosine’s therapeutic class is an antiarrhythmic medication. The pharmacologic class of adenosine is an endogenous nucleoside, which is naturally occurring in the body. Okay. So how does adenosine work in the body? Its action slows the conduction through the AV node. It interrupts reentry pathways into the AV node and therefore restores the patient to a sinus rhythm. So we’re looking at this area here. So it totally makes sense that adenosine is indicated for paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia, which is, is defined as a heart rate between 150 and 240 beats per minute with palpitations and chest pain. Okay. So some of the most common side effects that we see with adenosine are flushing because of its vasodilating effects, shortness of breath, nausea, and dizziness.

All right. So some nursing considerations with adenosine. There is a contraindication: if the patient has a first, second, or third-degree AV block, and it’s not recommended for AFib or Aflutter. The patient should absolutely be on a cardiac monitor before administration. Be sure to assess your patient’s blood pressure and apical pulse before adenosine. Super important guys, and also a little scary: you may see a moment of asystole after the bolus. So when I was in nursing school a long time ago, I either didn’t remember or didn’t know this important information about adenosine. I witnessed this moment of asystole after adenosine was given. And guys, I almost had a heart attack. So yes, it does happen. Teach the patient to avoid alcohol and caffeine on adenosine. And they may feel flushed after the medication is given. That’s it for adenosine or Adenocard. Now go out and be your best self today and as always happy nursing.