Should naloxone be prescribed in the ED management of patients with cardiac arrest? A case report and review of literature

  • Martins, Herlon Saraiva MD
  • Silva, Roberta Vasconcelos MD
  • Bugano, Diogo MS
  • Santana, Alfredo Nicodemos Cruz MD
  • Brandão-Neto, Rodrigo Antônio MD
  • Giannini, Fábio Poianas MD
  • Scalabrini-Neto, Augusto MD, PhD
  • Velasco, Irineu Tadeu MD, PhD

  • Department of Emergency Medicine, School of Medicine of the University of São Paulo, Hospital das Clinicas, 05.403–900 São Paulo, Brazil

Received for publication June 8, 2007; accepted June 22, 2007

American Journal of Emergency Medicine 26(1):p 113e5-113e8, January 2008.

We report the case of a patient in cardiac arrest with persistent pulseless electrical activity despite optimal treatment, who returned to spontaneous circulation only after the administration of naloxone. It is possible that naloxone may have a role in pulseless electrical activity/asystole related to opioid intoxication and, perhaps, in cardiac arrest related to hypoxia.

Copyright © 2008 W.B. Saunders Company, a Harcourt Health Sciences Company
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