Course Summary

This course is for Advanced Practice Registered Nurses, Registered Nurses and other Interdisciplinary Health Team Members who are seeking autonomous practice or advanced certification continuing education credits. Antihypertensive medications are used to treat heart disease and stroke, as well as comorbid conditions of the urinary and peripheral vascular systems. The use of an antihypertensive medication lowers blood pressure and improves health outcomes of patients by slowing disease outcomes caused by cardiovascular morbidity. Amongst the classes of drugs used to treat hypertension and cardiovascular disease, alpha1-adrenergic-blocking drugs are often used as second-line agents or in combination with other antihypertensive agents to manage symptoms. The effectiveness of alpha1-adrenergic-blocking medication in certain medical conditions and populations may also include men with benign prostatic hypertrophy. In older individuals, clinicians need to educate patients about the possibility of an initial adverse outcome of symptomatic hypotension and the risk of a drug-drug interaction leading to a severe physical response and injury.

Course Format

Homestudy

Learning Objectives

• To inform health clinicians of the indications, uses, contraindications and potential side effects of antihypertensive medication.

Course Syllabus

• Introduction
• Alpha1-adrenergic Blocking Medication
  1. Mechanism of Action
  2. Usage, Available Forms and Dosing
  3. Geriatrics, Hepatic and Renal Impairment: Dosing Adjustments
  4. Contraindications and Warnings
  5. Adverse Reactions
  6. Pregnancy and Breastfeeding
• Labeled Uses and Treatment of Hypertension
  Overdose of Doxazosin, Prazosin, and Terazosin
• Case Study: Doxazosin-induced Hypotension
  Discussion
• Summary

Authors

Noah H. Carpenter, MD

Dr. Noah Carpenter is a Thoracic and Peripheral Vascular Surgeon. He completed his Bachelor of Science in chemistry and medical school and training at the University of Manitoba. Dr. Carpenter completed surgical residency and fellowship at the University of Edmonton and Affiliated Hospitals in Edmonton, Alberta, and an additional Adult Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery fellowship at the University of Edinburgh, Scotland. He has specialized in microsurgical techniques, vascular endoscopy, laser and laparoscopic surgery in Brandon, Manitoba and Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada and in Colorado, Texas, and California. Dr. Carpenter has an Honorary Doctorate of Law from the University of Calgary, and was appointed a Citizen Ambassador to China, and has served as a member of the Indigenous Physicians Association of Canada, the Canadian College of Health Service Executives, the Science Institute of the Northwest Territories, Canada Science Council, and the International Society of Endovascular Surgeons, among others. He has been an inspiration to youth, motivating them to understand the importance of achieving higher education.

Kellie Wilson, PharmD

Kellie Wilson is a Doctor of Pharmacy practicing in Anaconda, Montana, where she lives with her husband and four children. She attended the University of Montana in Missoula where she graduated in 2009 with a doctorate in pharmacy. She later worked in Boise, Idaho for a large, retail pharmacy for 2 years, and then returned home to Montana to oversee an independently owned retail and long-term care pharmacy in Anaconda. As an independent retail pharmacist she has become very involved in psychiatric pharmacy for two major behavioral health organizations that are located around all of Montana. Kellie’s passion is retail pharmacy because she enjoys the interactions with customers as well as the challenges and rewards of staying current with the continuous changes in the pharmacy field.