What is the antidote for Heparin?

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Protamine sulfate is the appropriate antidote for heparin, which is an anticoagulant medication used to prevent and treat blood clots. When someone experiences heparin overdose or needs to reverse its anticoagulant effects quickly, protamine sulfate can be administered because it binds to heparin and neutralizes its effects.

This mechanism is particularly important in clinical settings like surgeries or procedures requiring blood clotting normalcy, where excess heparin can lead to uncontrollable bleeding. Other options do not serve this function in reversing heparin's effects; for example, while vitamin K assists with the reversal of anticoagulants like warfarin, it does not have any impact on heparin. Calcium gluconate is typically used in cases of calcium deficiency or hyperkalemia but does not counteract heparin. Activated charcoal is effective in binding certain ingested toxins in the gastrointestinal tract but is not applicable to drugs like heparin that are used parenterally and have immediate systemic effects.

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