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Sotalol in patients with life-threatening ventricular tachyarrhythmias

  • Arrhythmias
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Summary

To assess the antiarrhythmic efficacy of oral d,l-sotalol, 68 patients with sustained monomorphic ventricular tachycardia (SMVT) (n=62) or ventricular fibrillation (VF) (n=6) were studied by programmed ventricular stimulation (PVS). Fifty-one patients had coronary artery disease with a previous myocardial infarction and there were 17 patients without coronary disease: 11 patients had right and/or left ventricular dysplasia, one patient an aortic-valve replacement, and five patients had no visible heart disease. Prior to sotalol patients were treated with a mean of 3.6±1.3 antiarrhythmic class I drugs. None of these drugs prevented SMVT or VF. During control PVS (PVS 1), VF was induced in 8 patients (12%), SMVT in 47 patients (69%), and nonsustained ventricular tachycardia (NSVT) in 13 patients (19%). After loading with oral d,l-sotalol (320 mg/day), PVS (PVS 2) was repeated 4.2±3.3 weeks after PVS 1. In one of the patients (1%) VF was inducible, in 15 patients (22%) SMVT was induced, and in 18 patients (26%) NSVT was induced. In 34 patients (50%) either no or a short ventricular response was inducible. Our data show that oral d,l-sotalol is an effective antiarrhythmic agent in patients with SMVT or VF.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Cardiology, University Hospital Hannover, Konstanty-Gutschow-Str. 8, 3000, Hannover, FRG

    Hans-Joachim Trappe, Helmut Klein & Paul Lichtlen

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  1. Hans-Joachim Trappe
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  2. Helmut Klein
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  3. Paul Lichtlen
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Trappe, HJ., Klein, H. & Lichtlen, P. Sotalol in patients with life-threatening ventricular tachyarrhythmias. Cardiovasc Drug Ther 4, 1425–1432 (1990). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02018271

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