What if there is an air bubbles in a syringe or intravenous (IV) line and tubes ?
It depends on how many air bubbles in a syringe or IV tube. Injecting air into the veins or arteries causes a potentially fatal air embolism. This happens when one or more air bubbles cause a blockage in the vascular system. These bubbles can reach the brain, heart or lungs, depending on the route of injection, and cause a stroke, heart attack or respiratory failure.
If the bubble was rather small, the blood pressure kept it from getting stuck, and the excess gas is released through the exhalation.
This phenomenon is the same if a blood clot forms in a vein (during phlebitis for example), if a tumor lets a large lump escape into the blood or if during a displaced fracture pieces of bone marrow are released into the blood. blood flow.
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Symptoms of induced air embolism are no different from signs of other types of embolism. Murder is therefore most often not mentioned, especially among the elderly who have many potential causes of embolism.
The air embolism picture includes difficulty in breathing, confusion or loss of consciousness, hypotension, blue discoloration of the skin, and pain in the joints, chest or muscles. Treatment involves action by the doctor to reduce the air embolism and its absorption into the bloodstream without damage.
How to get rid of air bubbles in a syringe or IV tube?
For other drugs, air bubbles present on visual examination should be removed. To do this, hold the syringe vertically up and gently tap (don’t touch the needle) so that the bubble rises to the surface.
How to fill a syringe without air bubbles?
Draw the water into the syringe, making sure that no large air bubbles remain in the body of the syringe, then push the plunger all the way out to expel the water. The water remaining in the syringe-needle device is the dead volume.
What is an intramuscular injection?
An intramuscular injection is a drug that is injected into the muscle. Medicines can also be given to the skin (intradermal), just under the skin (subcutaneously) or into the vein (intravenous).
Lethal Dose
The lethal dose for humans is theoretically estimated between 3 and 5 ml per kg. It is estimated that 300 to 500 ml of gas introduced at a rate of 100 ml per second would prove fatal.
Can air bubbles in IV (intravenous) kill you?
The damage caused by air or gas embolisms is made worse by the body’s inflammatory response to the bubble. Venous air embolism can prove to be even more dangerous as the air can enter the arterial system and induce a stroke, mesenteric ischemia, or death.
Therefore, yes, death by injection from an air-filled syringe is possible, but it will not mean death in all cases.
The next question is, how much air does it take to cause an air embolism? If an arterial gas embolism reaches the brain, it is called a cerebral embolism and can cause a stroke. An injection of 2-3 ml of air into the cerebral circulation can be fatal. Only 0.5 to 1 ml of air in the pulmonary vein can cause cardiac arrest.
Given this, are air bubbles in IV lines dangerous?
The reality is… small amounts of air bubbles entering a person’s bloodstream can have harmful consequences and can be harmful. All air bubbles are foreign to our circulation and the majority can easily be removed from an intravenous line before entering the patient’s circulation.
What happens if air enters the IV line?
When an air bubble enters a vein, it is called a venous air embolism. When an air bubble enters an artery, it is called an arterial gas embolism. These air bubbles can travel to your brain, heart, or lungs and cause a heart attack, stroke, or respiratory failure.
Sources: PinterPandai, Wikipedia, American Society of Anesthesiologists, National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI)
Photo credit: Bru-nO / Pixabay
