[Decreasing the occurrence of arrhythmia during coronary spasm by the early administration of nitrates]

Variant angina is frequently accompanied by serious arrhythmias. The aim of our study was to verify the role of early nitrate administration in prevention of these arrhythmias. We compared arrhythmias occurrence in the course of 104 episodes of chest pain with ST elevation during which short acting nitrate was not administered (group I) and 114 episodes with administration of 2.5 mg isosorbit dinitrate (ISDN) spray (group II). Serious arrhythmias occurred in spontaneous episodes in 41 cases (39%) and in episodes with early ISDN administration in 15 cases (13%). Particular types of arrhythmias were as follows: ventricular premature beats in group I 32 and in group II only 12, supraventricular premature beats 4, resp. 3, A-V block IInd or IIIrd degree 5, resp. 1, ventricular tachycardia 5, resp. 0, junctional bradycardia 0, resp. 1. In conclusion, early administration of nitrates at the very beginning of stenocardia during coronary spasm can prevent or reduce the occurrence of serious arrhythmias.