Labetalol
Hypertensive emergency, Aortic dissection, Preeclampsia/eclampsia
Indications
- Hypertensive emergency
- Aortic dissection
- Preeclampsia/eclampsia
Adult dosing
- push: dose: 20; unit: mg IV; route: IV; interval: then 40-80mg q10min, max 300mg; fixed: true; infusion: dose: 0.5; maxDose: 2; unit: mg/min; route: IV; fixed: true
Pediatric dosing
- push: dose: 0.2; maxDose: 1; unit: mg/kg; route: IV; weightBased: true
Contraindications
- Severe bradycardia
- Heart block (2nd/3rd degree)
- Cardiogenic shock
- Decompensated HF
- Severe reactive airway disease
Clinical pearls
- Escalating dose protocol: 20mg, then 40mg, then 80mg IV q10min
- First-line for aortic dissection with esmolol or clevidipine
- Safe in pregnancy — preferred for preeclampsia
- Combined alpha + beta blocker — HR and BP reduction
Source and review
- ACOG Practice Bulletin; AHA/ACC Aortic Disease Guidelines. Last reviewed: 2024-11-01