A 21-year-old male is brought to the ED following a night of partying in his fraternity. His friends found him "asleep" and could not get him to respond. They cannot recall how many alcoholic beverages he drank the night before. While educating a student nurse and the roommates in the fraternity, the nurse begins by explaining that alcohol is
A) water-soluble compound that is easily absorbed by the gastric lining of the stomach.
B) very lipid soluble and rapidky crosses the blood-brain barrier.
C) able to reverse the transport of some substances to remove them from the brain.
D) very likely to cause sedation, and therefore the patient just needs to sleep it off.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The blood-brain barrier prevents many drugs from entering the brain. Most highly water-soluble compounds are excluded from the brain. Many lipid-soluble molecules cross the lipid layers of the blood-brain barrier with ease. Alcohol, nicotine, and heroin are very lipid soluble and rapidly enter the brain. Alcohol toxicity can kill patients, especially if they are not used to consuming beverages. These patients should never be left alone to "sleep it off."

A 21-Year-Old Male Is Brought to the ED Following a Night