Naloxone can be administered via which routes?

• A. IV and IM only
• B. IV/IM/IO/IN
• C. Oral
• D. Subcutaneous

Answer: (B)

Naloxone is a fast-acting opioid antagonist, and in field care you need routes that are quick and versatile. Intravenous administration delivers the effect immediately, and intraosseous access provides a rapid alternative when IV access is hard to obtain. If IV or IO isn’t available, intramuscular injection is a reliable and straightforward option. Intranasal delivery is especially practical in austere settings because it needs no needles and still reverses opioid effects promptly. Oral administration isn’t effective for reversal due to poor bioavailability from first-pass metabolism, so it isn’t used in acute settings. Therefore, the routes that cover rapid and practical administration are IV, IM, IO, and intranasal.