Amiodarone guidelines

New York, June 28, 2000 (Praxis Press) Clinical trials demonstrate the efficacy, broad anti-arrhythmic and anti-fibrillatory action, and complex array of adverse effects of amiodarone. The absence of general recommendations for proper patient management likely leads to both overuse and underuse of this drug. Practical guidelines from the North American Society of Pacing and Electrophysiology provide the physician with a consensus approach to the prescription of amiodarone (see paper). Based on the best available data, the recommendations review the indications for use of this drug, the various drug-dosing considerations, the assessment of its efficacy, the appropriate long-term patients follow-up, and the spectrum of its expected adverse reactions. These guidelines should contribute to improved patient outcomes, although they make up only one component of the clinical decision.