Adrenaline in Dental Practice
Content
Use of adrenaline/ epinephrine in Dental Practice
• route of administration
• general therapeutic uses
• mechanism (simplified)
• effect (both good and bad)
Two frequent and often life-saving uses of adrenaline are the management
of anaphylaxis and cardiac arrest. In dental practice, local anesthetics cause some degree of
vasodilation.This vasodilatory effect poses several problems for the clinician: bleeding is noted at
the site of injection; absorption of the anaesthetic into the blood stream is rapid, shortening the
duration of effect; and the rapid absorption results in higher, potentially dangerous, plasma levels.
To overcome these disadvantages, a vasoconstrictor is added to most local anaesthetics,
with adrenaline being the most common.
a
• route of administration
• general therapeutic uses
• mechanism (simplified)
• effect (both good and bad)
Two frequent and often life-saving uses of adrenaline are the management
of anaphylaxis and cardiac arrest. In dental practice, local anesthetics cause some degree of
vasodilation.This vasodilatory effect poses several problems for the clinician: bleeding is noted at
the site of injection; absorption of the anaesthetic into the blood stream is rapid, shortening the
duration of effect; and the rapid absorption results in higher, potentially dangerous, plasma levels.
To overcome these disadvantages, a vasoconstrictor is added to most local anaesthetics,
with adrenaline being the most common.
a
