Nitrates
Medication class detail with safety cues and nursing action focus.
Cardiacneeds review
Nitrates
Examples: nitroglycerin, isosorbide mononitrate
Mechanism
Dilates veins and coronary vessels to reduce workload and improve oxygen supply-demand balance.
Used for
- Angina
- Acute coronary syndrome symptom relief per protocol
Side effects
- Headache
- Hypotension
- Dizziness
Nursing actions
- Check blood pressure before administration.
- Teach sitting or lying before sublingual doses.
- Verify no recent PDE-5 inhibitor use before giving.
Hold / question cues
- Severe hypotension
- Recent sildenafil/tadalafil/vardenafil use
- Right ventricular infarct concern per protocol
Antidote / reversal
- No routine class-specific antidote or reversal agent is seeded for this class; hold/question unsafe doses, support ABCs, notify the provider, and use facility or poison-control guidance for toxicity.
NCLEX pearl
- Nitro needs pressure to give pressure relief.
Individual drug cards
Related study cards
Shows conditions, glossary terms, Drive entities, and source-linked cards connected to this medication class.
Drugmedication class
Isosorbide Mononitrate (Imdur)
PDE-5 inhibitor plus nitrate can cause life-threatening hypotension.
Drugmedication class
Nitroglycerin
PDE-5 inhibitor plus nitro can cause life-threatening hypotension.
Conditionmedication safety
Coronary artery disease
Crushing chest pressure, diaphoresis, nausea, shortness of breath.
Conditionmedication safety
MI / acute coronary syndrome
Crushing chest pressure, diaphoresis, nausea, radiating pain.
Termmedication cue
CAD
Narrowed coronary arteries reduce oxygen supply to the heart muscle.
Termmedication cue
MI
Heart muscle injury from inadequate blood flow.