Medications
The two main categories of medications to describe the local consequences of their extravasation are:
- irritants, which primarily cause local inflammatory reactions at the infusion site but no permanent damage
- vesicants, which have the potential to cause severe or irreversible tissue injury and necrosis
Complications related to extravasation are possible with many medications, but it is a particular concern with cytotoxic/chemotherapeutic drugs used in the treatment of cancer, since these are often highly toxic medications that must be administered in controlled fashion to avoid adverse events.
In recent years, healthcare professionals are becoming more aware of this problem.
Read more about this topic: Extravasation (intravenous)