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Ketamine analgesia — DIPIMC MCQ

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HardPharmacology (Pre-Hospital)Ketamine analgesiaDIPIMCDipIMC

A hypotensive trauma patient needs analgesia to tolerate extrication, but there is concern about causing excessive sedation and airway compromise.

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Correct answer: C — Use a low analgesic, sub-dissociative dose titrated to effect, recognising its relative haemodynamic stability

Explanation lettering: B = shown as A · C = shown as B · D = shown as C · E = shown as D · A = shown as E

A low, sub-dissociative dose of ketamine titrated to effect provides analgesia while preserving airway reflexes, and ketamine is relatively haemodynamically stable, which makes it useful in the shocked patient. A high dissociative dose (A) risks unwanted sedation and airway loss when only analgesia is intended. Titrating low-dose ketamine offers pain relief with comparative cardiovascular stability in trauma.

Reference: JRCALC Clinical Guidelines; pre-hospital analgesia guidance