Among veterinary patients, careful monitoring of the patient and injection site for manifestations of erythema and drug leakage during an injection/ infusion would be prudent practice. Non-irritants do not usually produce local reactions to surrounding tissue however, mild inflammation has been reported. Irritants have been described in human medicine as a burning sensation, pain, and/or erythema during injection and extravasation. Vesicants can cause pain, edema, and erythema, and potentially lead to blisters and tissue necrosis when extravasated. Chemotherapeutics can be classified into three categories: vesicants, irritants, and non-irritants. When assessing a chemotherapy extravasation, it is important to understand the classification of the chemotherapeutic agent in terms of its potential to cause cellular damage if extravasated. A chemotherapeutic extravasation is considered an oncologic emergency. The severity of tissue damage can be limited by quick detection of extravasations and swift treatment. Chemotherapeutic agents are at highest risk for complications due to the nature of the agents and the potential to cause high cellular damage when extravasated.

The volume, contact time, and drug properties are all factors that have to be considered when assessing an extravasation event. Extravasation is a term that describes a drug inadvertently or accidentally leaking into surrounding tissue or the subcutaneous space during IV infusions.

Antidote definition literature