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Has anyone experienced problems with IV Phenergan 25 mg. We are currently having trouble administering it to any one. It seems like everyone has respiratory depression with this drug. We have had a few people stop breathing. I know that this is a potential side effect, but it seems like it is happening a awful lot. Also does anyone know how safe it is for children above the age of 2.
I had IV Phenergan the other day for intractable N/V. I didn't have any "bad side effects" from it. Did make me feel a little loopy and I sure wouldn't have tried to get OOB by myself but otherwise went well. Not sure what dose I received, but the ER nurse put it in the distal port and I didn't feel a thing....
Routinely give 4 mg Zofran diluted in 50 cc normal saline for nausea/vomiting post-operatively. Have had orders to give up to 8 mg Zofran at one time, but have found that if 4 doesn't work - then 8 doesn't work. In my experience, anyway. Rarely, have given phenergan -- have given both the IV/IM routes with no noted side effects. Agree that when I'm in the hospital, I want Zofran FIRST.
I have a lot of respect for phenergan iv. In my early days of med surg nursing I gave a 99 year old hip surgery patient 25 mg Iv. It should have been given IM according to the order. Almost instantly she went into CHF. Had it not been for an agressive charge nurse who called the patient's medical doctor and demanded a huge dose of Lasix, she would have probably been a goner that night. I was only a year into nursing at that time and almost got out of it because of that but the charge nurse encouraged me to stick with it. That was more than 10 years ago and then you never saw an order for less than 25 mg phenergan iv. Now, almost all our orders are for 6.25 or 12.5 mg. When I have an order for 25 mg iv, I now titrate it. By the way, I kept track of that patient and she lived to a ripe old age of 105.
We've had a few cases of respiratory depression and unresponsiveness with Phergan over the past year, so we have a new policy for administration. We dilute the dose in 50cc of D5 or NS and hang it over 15 minutes. No adverse effects from that yet. I have seen Zofran used more frequently now, too, and I have to admit, I'm much more comfortable giving that.
shannonRN, BSN, RN
322 Posts
preciousnurse, when i asked my fiance what zofran cost he replied, "a lot." when i asked how much phenergan cost he replied, "pennies." sorry, i don't have specifics, but i think that says it all...