Falsely elevated digoxin levels: another look. 1989

J M Longley, and J E Murphy
Department of Critical Care Clinical Pharmacy, Kennestone Hospital, Marietta, Georgia.

Digoxin therapy can cause important toxic events when elevated drug levels occur. Interpreting drug levels can be hampered by artifactual errors such as poor assay quality, incorrect timing or drawing of blood samples, and, as has been demonstrated for tobramycin, errors due to drawing blood through drug administration catheters. A case is reported in which a correctly timed and analyzed digoxin level of 33.60 ng/ml may have been due to drawing the blood sample through a line used to administer digoxin eight hours earlier. Subsequent measurements by venipuncture documented much lower concentrations.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D001800 Blood Specimen Collection The taking of a blood sample to determine its character as a whole, to identify levels of its component cells, chemicals, gases, or other constituents, to perform pathological examination, etc. Blood Specimen Collections,Collection, Blood Specimen,Collections, Blood Specimen,Specimen Collection, Blood,Specimen Collections, Blood
D004077 Digoxin A cardiotonic glycoside obtained mainly from Digitalis lanata; it consists of three sugars and the aglycone DIGOXIGENIN. Digoxin has positive inotropic and negative chronotropic activity. It is used to control ventricular rate in ATRIAL FIBRILLATION and in the management of congestive heart failure with atrial fibrillation. Its use in congestive heart failure and sinus rhythm is less certain. The margin between toxic and therapeutic doses is small. (From Martindale, The Extra Pharmacopoeia, 30th ed, p666) Digacin,Digitek,Digoregen,Digoxina Boehringer,Digoxine Nativelle,Dilanacin,Hemigoxine Nativelle,Lanacordin,Lanicor,Lanoxicaps,Lanoxin,Lanoxin-PG,Lenoxin,Mapluxin,Boehringer, Digoxina,Lanoxin PG,Nativelle, Digoxine,Nativelle, Hemigoxine
D005189 False Positive Reactions Positive test results in subjects who do not possess the attribute for which the test is conducted. The labeling of healthy persons as diseased when screening in the detection of disease. (Last, A Dictionary of Epidemiology, 2d ed) False Positive Reaction,Positive Reaction, False,Positive Reactions, False,Reaction, False Positive,Reactions, False Positive
D005260 Female Females
D006323 Heart Arrest Cessation of heart beat or MYOCARDIAL CONTRACTION. If it is treated within a few minutes, heart arrest can be reversed in most cases to normal cardiac rhythm and effective circulation. Asystole,Cardiac Arrest,Cardiopulmonary Arrest,Arrest, Cardiac,Arrest, Cardiopulmonary,Arrest, Heart,Asystoles
D006801 Humans Members of the species Homo sapiens. Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D000368 Aged A person 65 years of age or older. For a person older than 79 years, AGED, 80 AND OVER is available. Elderly

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