Effects of neuromuscular blocker drugs

These drugs have a particular way of acting. They do so very specifically in the skeletal muscles. Before we go on, let us keep in mind that we have three types of muscles in the body, the first of which is the cardiac muscle, which is found in the heart, and s the largest amount of tissue that makes up this organ.

The other type is the smooth muscle, which we find in the blood vessels (veins and arteries), in the intestine, stomach, and other hollow organs, the characteristics that I would like to emphasize of this type is that we cannot control it at our will.

The other, and it is the one on which the drugs in question act, is the skeletal muscle, of which we have the greatest presence in our body. This is the one we have in our arms, legs, abdomen, and that if we can manage and move at will, they move when we want them to. As in the case of the abdominal muscles, the biceps, triceps, etc..

These muscles communicate with the nerves and it is the nerves that make them contract. As I explained in the post I uploaded yesterday, at the end of the neuron acetylcholine is released, to bind to receptors, in this case in muscle receptors, which will cause each muscle cell to "depolarize ", ie, let specific molecules enter and leave others, which causes the cells to contract all together.

Once the acetylcholine has completed its action, it detaches from the receptor and an enzyme acts to neutralize it by a process of hydrolysis. So far this is what normally happens, but What specifically do the drugs used in anesthesia do??

They also bind in that receptor that binds acetylcholine, in the same place as acetylcholine, except that they do not detach. To do so, another drug, the "antidote ", must be administered to reverse this binding. And this is how everything is subsequently restored and returns to normal.

This is the great difference with the SARIN GAS, the same one I spoke about yesterday, that once it binds, in this case to the acetylcholinesterase, it does not detach, it remains bound, generating the great problem at the neuromuscular junction and at the level of the central nervous system.

These anesthetic drugs are not only used for general anesthesia but also for times when it is necessary to place an endotracheal tube in a patient to help him/her breathe. It should also be kept in mind that when these drugs are used, they must be under strict medical supervision to be able to take care of any complications that may arise. And they are not drugs that are used in any space, since they affect many vital functions in the body.

Pixabay/ Author: tho-ge

For example, it causes immobility of skeletal muscles, including respiratory muscles, which, if you don't have what is needed to help the patient breathe, the consequences can be very serious indeed.

I wanted to share this information in light of the fact that yesterday I shared one that is terrible in terms of use, but this is a way to contrast the effects of the misuse of one chemical and how another, which works in a certain "similar " way, but under medical control and for medical purposes has allowed such an important area of medicine as surgery to advance.

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I hope this post has been informative for you, thank you very much for reading. Any questions or suggestions please leave them in the comments and I will gladly answer them.

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• Links consulted

• Pharmacology of neuromuscular blocking drugs

• Pharmacology of neuromuscular
  blocking drugs

• General anesthesia