Re: Beta blocker eye drops

pitdakota · ‎03-16-2010

On 11/16/2014 SoftRaindrops said:
On 11/16/2014 pitdakota said:
On 11/16/2014 SoftRaindrops said:
On 11/15/2014 Tissyanne said: Some blood pressure medications should not be stopped abruptly.
Exactly and considering the OP claims to be a nurse, she should know that no one is qualified to take her husband off blood pressure medications but the prescribing physician. The results of such could have dire consequences.

In this case, happy housewife is right on point and I know exactly what she means when she states she told her husband not to take the medication. It doesn't mean to totally cease the medication, but you don't take it at that time because the BP is low enough that taking the med can cause some problems.

This is very common and used all across the country in hospitals, nursing homes, and rehab facilities. Nurses are quite used to withholding a dose of an anti-hypertensive if the systolic BP is below a certain point.

So she isn't talking about taking her husband totally off of his BP medication at all. And it was a good call on her part to tell him to skip that dose with his BP already down and probably another round of eye drops coming later in the day.

I respectfully disagree.

The only person qualified to adjust someone's medications are the prescribing physicians. The ones with an MD after their name.

Sorry we will just agree to disagree. Do you know the difference between a selective beta blocker and a non-selective beta blocker and which beta receptors one works on and the other one doesn't? Well happy housewife does and she is more than qualified in this case to make that call with her husband or any patient that she might provide care.

In fact, nurses would be held liable in a work situation if they administered an anti-hypertensive medication to a patient with a systolic BP below a certain point or heart rate below a certain point. It does not take a physician to make that decision. It may come as a surprise to you but nurses make decisions like this all of the time in the patient care arena. They are required to do so by the very Nurse Practice Act for the states they are licensed to practice in and also take licensing exams on this type of content. Guaranteed there are questions on the licensing exam in regard to a number of medications that are prescribed with patient conditions that alert the nurse it is not safe to administer that dose of medication. And bing**** that is the correct answer.

Doesn't mean that nurses don't make mistakes, but they receive quite a bit of education in these areas and have to pass licensing examinations on these very topics. Wink So for her to tell her husband to skip that dose of medication and then see what happens the next day is perfectly fine and acceptable. She would then know if it continues to happen to contact that md and see what course of action he or she wants to take.

But of course, she could go ahead and tell him to take the medication. His blood pressure drops more and oh.....his heart rate of 60 drops more because it drops his heart rate as well. He has a syncopal reaction falls and suffers a head injury, not wouldn't that be lovely?

I realize to some it may be "in vogue" to criticize HH, but this is certainly not one of them.

ETA: and others without the initials of md behind their name can prescribe medications as well.

* Freedom has a taste the protected will never know *

Carole22 · ‎03-10-2010

I have had recent problems with eyedrops in the same manner. The Timolol made me feel out of breath with any exertion. The Lumigan did something (I forget what and really wanted to like them because of their lash-growing tendencies) and my most recent one of Alphagan affects me similar to the Timolol, although I didn't THINK it was a beta blocker...??? I go to the Dr. again on Wed. and expect something new.

151949 · ‎03-09-2010

My DH goes to his PCP this week and his eye doc next week. He seems to be doing ok now with SBP between 100 - 110 and HR in the 60's. He is still insisting on doing the eye drops himself but I think since he figured out that they were what was causing his BP to be low he is being more mindful to only get 1 drop. I'm pretty sure the reason he had a radical drop in BP was that he was using too much.I have finally convinced him that this is not just like other drops but is a medication that has to be carefully administered.