[Endobronchial administration of adrenaline in cardiopulmonary resuscitation: pharmacokinetic and dynamic studies in the dog].

The present animal study was designed to investigate the pharmacokinetic behavior of epinephrine after endobronchial (e.b.) and intravenous (i.v.) administration and its correlation to pharmacodynamic measurements. We found the effectiveness of e.b.-epinephrine (100 micrograms/kg BW) to be in the same magnitude as i.v.-epinephrine (100 micrograms/kg BW) with only a slight delay in the pharmacodynamic onset of a few seconds. The bioavailability of e.b.-administration of epinephrine was in the range of 80-85%. The therapeutic effect of e.b.-epinephrine (100 micrograms/kg BW) lasted much longer (30 min) when compared to i.v.-epinephrine (10 micrograms/kg BW) where the pharmacodynamic effect was terminated after 3 to 5 min. For the clinical situation of cardiopulmonary resuscitation a dose of 2-3 mg epinephrine in 5-10 ml of physiological saline instilled deeply into the bronchial system should be considered as alternative administration technique with fast onset and good effectiveness.