asked 3 years ago
Could narcan be administered to children when their respirations rate falls below the parameters of normal breaths/min? For example, the RR for infants 0-3 months range between 30-60 breaths/min; so, if they are breathing <30 and meet all the indications would narcan administration be justified?
1 Answers
answered 3 years ago
Good question.
I assume you mean in the context of an opioid overdose then as with all narcotic ODs, narcan is justified if the neonate/child is showing signs of an impending respiratory arrest. Since the majority of pediatric VSAs are respiratory in nature, preventing a respiratory arrest is key.
The current medical directives allow for the use of naloxone for any person greater than 24 hours of age. The dose for the pediatric population is the same as that for the adult and IM is the preferred route of administration.
As mentioned above since respiratory arrest is the most common cause of cardiac arrest in this population, early and effective BVM may be all that is necessary to resuscitate the child and naloxone can be used if this is not successful.
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