why cannot medicines that are given intramuscularly be given intravenously also?and vice versa?

Question

some medicines are giventhrough muscular injections and some are injected through the vein.some medications can be given through both routes.the question pertains to methods used to ensure both venous as well as intramuscular routes of drug administration

Answer 1

It really depends on the medications, the route of administration depends on many factors, the half life of the medication, the way it is metabolised in the body, etc, etc, etc.

As to why some medications are given through IV versus IM os SC:

Some medications are most effective given a specific route. Dextrose for example will actually cause tissue to necrotize (tissue damage and death) if given intramuscularly (IM) or subcutaneously (SC), so IV is the only way it should be administered as a drug (other than orally).

Some medications have such an extremely short half life that the only way to administer it is IV. An example of this is Adenosine, it has a half life of 6 seconds and is used for cardiac emergencies, if it was administred IM or SC it would simply not get to the heart fast enough to do any good, as IM and SC routes, drugs have to work their way to the circulatory system.

As to why some medications are given IM/SC:

Whenever you start an IV on a patient you are literally opening a door to their circulatory system, meaning that strict aseptci technique must be used. Because of the acess fto the circulatory system, this increases the risk of infection and such, thus IV is considered to be more invasive than IM or SC. Although the risk of infection is not zero with IM or SC, it is considerably less than IV.

Hope that helps.

Answer 2

the thing that you should understand is the purpose of giving an injection,usually the intramuscular injections are given as a routiene i.e. for some less immediate reponse,and the use of the intravenous injection is to give an immediate response...most of the drugs are given in both routes...some drugs are not given in either routes like hormones vaccines , it may lead to drastic effects...so the purpose is important...and care to be taken while injecting

Answer 3

some antibiotics are developed to be given intravenously as these are meant for deadly viruses .
a medicine injected in such a fashion starts its work immediately due to the fact that it goes along with the blood. and as you would all know blood travels throughout the body. for eg. malaria, liptosperosis etc. this helps in faster recovery.
whereas a medicine injected intramuscular is generally for lesser illnesses like fever, cold etc.

Answer 4

Most drugs given I/M contain an local anesthetic, to reduce pain. These drugs cannot be given I/V, as this could affect the heart's rhythm. Some drugs are recommended to be given I/V, such as diazepam for a convulsion. This would take a longer time to act if given I/M. Chloroquine for malaria is given I/V. If given I/M, it is absorbed all at once from the site of injection and can cause a severe allergic reaction. It is also very painful.
I/M injections are more painful. If repeated injections have to be given, it is more convenient to give them I/V, through a cannula.

Answer 5

some medicines are not manufactured for intravenous use because it would greatly irritate the vein while some IV meds don't seem effective if given IM.

Answer 6

they can be...you need schooling...good luck in your endeavor