Course Summary

The class of angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors are widely prescribed for conditions of primary hypertension. Hypertension is a very common disease that affects approximately 75 million Americans or roughly 1 in 3 adults. ACE inhibitors also have distinct, specific advantages for treating hypertensive patients who have chronic kidney disease, diabetes mellitus, heart failure, and myocardial infarction. They are known to prevent mortality related to a cardiovascular event. Except for captopril and lisinopril, the ACE inhibitors are pro-drugs, changed in the liver to a pharmacologically active metabolite. ACE inhibitors may differ in their pharmacokinetic properties, such as peak blood levels and effect on blood pressure depending on the drug.

Course Format

Homestudy

Course Syllabus

• I.              Introduction
• II.            ACE Inhibitors And The Renin-Angiotensin System
• III.          Pharmacological Profile Of ACE Inhibitors
  • 1.   Pharmacological Category
  • 2.   Uses
  • 3.   US Boxed Warnings
  • 4.   Contraindications
  • 5.   Warnings
  • 6.   Adverse Reactions
  • 7.   Use in Pregnancy
  • 8.   Breastfeeding
  • 9.   Drug-drug Interactions
  • 10.        Dietary Considerations
  • 11.        Pharmacodynamics
  • 12.        Monitoring During Drug Therapy
• IV.          ACE Inhibitors For Hypertension
  • 1.   Primary Hypertension
  • 2.   Comorbid Hypertension/Chronic Kidney Disease
• V.             ACE Inhibitors For Heart Failure With Reduced Ejection Fraction
• VI.          ACE Inhibitors In ST Segment Elevation Myocardial Infarction
• VII.        Diabetic Nephropathy And ACE Inhibitor Use
• VIII.      ACE Inhibitor-Induced Angioedema
  • 1.   Statistics and Clinical Presentation
  • 2.   Treatment of Angioedema
• IX.          ACE Inhibitor Overdose
  • 1.   Clinical Presentation
  • 2.   Treatment
• X.             Summary

Author

Dana Bartlett, RN, BSN, MSN, MA, CSPI

Dana Bartlett is a professional nurse and author. His clinical experience includes 16 years of ICU and ER experience and over 27 years as a poison control center information specialist. Dana has published numerous CE and journal articles, written NCLEX material, textbook chapters, and more than 100 online CE articles, and done editing and reviewing for publishers such as Elsevier, Lippincott, and Thieme. He has written widely on the subject of toxicology and was a contributing editor, toxicology section, for Critical Care Nurse journal. He is currently employed at the Connecticut Poison Control Center. He lives in Wappingers Falls, NY.