Amiodarone: guidelines for use and monitoring.

Amiodarone is a potent antiarrhythmic agent that is used to treat ventricular arrhythmias and atrial fibrillation. The drug prevents the recurrence of life-threatening ventricular arrhythmias and produces a modest reduction of sudden deaths in high-risk patients. Amiodarone is more effective than sotalol or propafenone in preventing recurrent atrial fibrillation in patients for whom a rhythm-control strategy is chosen.