RCUK Advanced Life Support (ALS) Practice Exam – Complete Prep Guide 2025

Atropine is contraindicated in patients with a history of cardiac transplant due to the unique physiological changes that occur following transplantation. After a heart transplant, a patient's heart is denervated, which means that it does not respond to the autonomic nervous system in the same way as a non-transplanted heart. Atropine works by blocking the action of the vagus nerve on the heart, which can lead to an increased heart rate. However, in transplanted hearts, this vagal response may not be present due to the surgical alterations, making the use of atropine potentially ineffective and possibly harmful. The absence of vagal tone in transplanted hearts could lead to unpredictable changes in heart rate, which can complicate management.

In addition to this, while other clinical conditions such as hyperkalemia, acute renal failure, and metabolic acidosis may require careful consideration of atropine use, they do not present the same significant contraindication as a history of cardiac transplant does. Each of these conditions may warrant different therapeutic responses, but they generally do not carry the same direct risks associated with atropine administration in patients with transplanted hearts.