Bupivacaine

Excerpt

Bupivacaine is a potent local anesthetic with unique characteristics from the amide group of local anesthetics. Local anesthetics are used in regional anesthesia, epidural anesthesia, spinal anesthesia, and local infiltration. Local anesthetics generally block the generation of the action potential in nerve cells by increasing the threshold for electrical excitation. This activity reviews the mechanism of action, adverse event profile, toxicity, dosing, pharmacodynamics, and monitoring of bupivacaine, pertinent for members of the interprofessional team for the treatment of patients when local anesthesia is warranted.