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Sympathomimetic Agents

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Critical Care Toxicology

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Abstract

Sympathomimetics constitute a large group of drugs with a spectrum of uses that range from over-the-counter cough and cold preparations to critical care medications. Their clinical effects are similar and theoretically should be predictable based on an understanding of the specific pharmacology of the drugs. However, because of the complexity of the autonomic nervous system and its responses to physiologic changes within the body, the actual clinical effects of these drugs vary and may be unpredictable.

The original version of this chapter was revised: The second affiliation of R.J. Hoffman was erroneously included.

An erratum to this chapter can be found at DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-17900-1_186.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Emergency Medicine, Sidra Medical and Research Center, Doha, Qatar

    Robert J. Hoffman

  2. Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, New York, New Jersey, USA

    Lewis S. Nelson

Authors
  1. Robert J. Hoffman
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  2. Lewis S. Nelson
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Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Robert J. Hoffman or Lewis S. Nelson .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Medicine, Division of Clinical Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Colorado, School of Medicine, Aurora, Colorado, USA

    Jeffrey Brent

  2. FDA, Office of New Drugs/Immediate Office, Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, Silver Spring, Maryland, USA

    Keith Burkhart

  3. Clinical Toxicology, St Thomas’ Hospital, Silver Spring, Maryland, USA

    Paul Dargan

  4. Toxicology Associates, University of Colorado, School of Medicine, Denver, Colorado, USA

    Benjamin Hatten

  5. Medical Toxicological Intensive Care Unit, Lariboisiere Hospital, Paris-Diderot University, Paris, France

    Bruno Megarbane

  6. Toxicology Associates, University of Colorado, School of Medicine, Denver, Colorado, USA

    Robert Palmer

  7. Toxinology Department, Women’s and Children’s Hospital, North Adelaide, South Australia, Australia

    Julian White

Grading System for Levels of Evidence Supporting Recommendations in Critical Care Toxicology, 2nd Edition

  1. I

    Evidence obtained from at least one properly randomized controlled trial.

  2. II-1

    Evidence obtained from well-designed controlled trials without randomization.

  3. II-2

    Evidence obtained from well-designed cohort or case–control analytic studies, preferably from more than one center or research group.

  4. II-3

    Evidence obtained from multiple time series with or without the intervention. Dramatic results in uncontrolled experiments (such as the results of the introduction of penicillin treatment in the 1940s) could also be regarded as this type of evidence.

  5. III

    Opinions of respected authorities, based on clinical experience, descriptive studies and case reports, or reports of expert committees.

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Hoffman, R.J., Nelson, L.S. (2017). Sympathomimetic Agents. In: Brent, J., et al. Critical Care Toxicology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-17900-1_107

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