Study says dry mouth inhibits nitrate dosage
A recent study published in the American Journal of Cardiology found that having patients take a drink of water before placing a nitrate pill under their tongue increases the drug’s effectiveness.
Patients undergoing cardiac catheterization who wet their mouths before placing the nitrate pill under their tongue recorded a significant drop in blood pressure, according to lead study author Scott Kinlay, MD, in the cardiac catherterization laboratory at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston. Wetting the mouth had no effect, however, with patients who were given a spray form of the drug. The article published in September, noted researchers did not test to see if wetting the mouth sped the action of nitroglycerin.
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