Therapy of Arrhythmias with Antiarrhythmic Drugs: Not the End of an Era

Antiarrhythmic agents entered clinical use over 100 years ago. Reports about proarrhythmic effects have led to a marked reduction in the use of these drugs. However, antiarrhythmic drug therapy is far from being dead. Registry data show that almost 50% of patients undergoing catheter ablation of atrial fibrillation will receive antiarrhythmic drugs after the procedure. In addition, new indications following the concept of precision medicine have emerged. One example is drug treatment of arrhythmias in patients with inherited arrhythmic disorders. Thus, antiarrhythmic drugs are still clinically useful drugs. It is hoped that the new developments in the area of ECG and patient monitoring will help to facilitate and optimize both the assessment of antiarrhythmic drug efficacy and the safety of treatment.