Question

A health care professional is caring for a patient who is receiving nitroglycerin (Nitrostat) IV and is changing to the oral form of the drug. The health care professional should realize that the oral dose will be higher than the IV dose because of which of the following?

A. The IV dose crossing the blood-brain barrier
B. Decreased bioavailability because of the first-pass effect.
C. Decreased half-life of the oral dose
D. Increased rate of excretion of the oral dose

Answer 1

The oral dose of nitroglycerin (Nitrostat) is higher than the IV dose due to decreased bioavailability because of the first-pass effect.

Step-by-step explanation:

The oral dose of nitroglycerin (Nitrostat) will be higher than the IV dose due to decreased bioavailability because of the first-pass effect. When a drug is administered orally, it must pass through the liver before entering the systemic circulation. In the liver, some of the drug may be metabolized and inactivated before it reaches the systemic circulation, resulting in lower bioavailability. On the other hand, when a drug is administered intravenously, it bypasses the liver and enters the systemic circulation directly, resulting in higher bioavailability.