Lethal toxicity of propafenone in a case of suicidal attempt

Abstract

Propafenone is a well-established IC class antiarrhythmic drug widely used in the treatment of a variety of supraventricular and ventricular tachyarrhythmias. Propafenone has been widely used in clinical practice in recent years. As a class IC antiarrhythmic agent it may show a significant proarrhythmogenic effect even at therapeutic doses. Toxic effects of high doses including fatal outcome have been sporadically described in the literature. Fatal course is usually associated with cardiac conduction abnormalities with progression to asystole or electromechanical dissociation. Since a specific treatment is not available and resuscitation techniques may be of limited value, early diagnosis and primary detoxication are essential. In this study, we present one case of suicidal attempt acute toxicity 7500 mg of propafenone that proceeded mortal and review the literature on this subject.