<p><strong>Signs And Symptoms</strong>: Toxicity from dobutamine hydrochloride is usually due to excessive cardiac &beta;- receptor stimulation. The duration of action of dobutamine hydrochloride is generally short (T&frac12;= 2 minutes) because it is rapidly metabolized by catechol-0-methyltransferase. The symptoms of toxicity may include&nbsp;anorexia, nausea, vomiting,&nbsp;tremor, anxiety,&nbsp;palpitations, headache, shortness of breath, and anginal and nonspecific chest pain. The positive&nbsp;inotropicand chronotropic effects of dobutamine on the&nbsp;myocardium&nbsp;may cause&nbsp;hypertension, tachyarrhythmias, myocardial&nbsp;ischemia, and&nbsp;ventricular fibrillation.&nbsp;Hypotension&nbsp;may result from&nbsp;vasodilation.<br />
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<strong>Treatment</strong>: To obtain up-to-date information about the treatment of overdose, a good resource is your certified Regional Poison Control Center. Telephone numbers of certified poison control centers are listed in the Physicians&#39; Desk Reference (PDR). In managing overdosage, consider the possibility of multiple drug overdoses, interaction among drugs, and unusual drug&nbsp;kinetics&nbsp;in your patient.<br />
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The initial actions to be taken in a dobutamine hydrochloride overdose are discontinuing administration, establishing an airway, and ensuring&nbsp;oxygenation&nbsp;and&nbsp;ventilation. Resuscitative measures should be initiated promptly. Severe&nbsp;ventricular&nbsp;tachyarrhythmias may be successfully treated with propranolol or lidocaine. Hypertension usually responds to a reduction in dose or discontinuation of therapy.<br />
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Protect the patient&#39;s airway and support ventilation and&nbsp;perfusion. If needed, meticulously monitor and maintain, within acceptable limits, the patient&#39;s vital signs, blood gases, serum electrolytes, etc. If the product is ingested, unpredictable absorption may occur from the mouth and the&nbsp;gastrointestinal tract. Absorption of drugs from the&nbsp;gastrointestinal&nbsp;tract may be decreased by giving&nbsp;activated charcoal, which, in many cases, is more effective than emisis of lavage; consider charcoal instead of or in addition to&nbsp;gastric&nbsp;emptying. Repeated doses of charcoal over time may hasten elimination of some drugs that have been absorbed. Safeguard the patient&#39;s airway when employing gastric emptying or charcoal.<br />
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Forced&nbsp;diuresis,&nbsp;peritoneal dialysis,&nbsp;hemodialysis, or charcoal hemoperfusion have not been established as beneficial for an overdose of dobutamine hydrochloride</p>