[Is There Still a Need for Medical Antiarrhythmic Therapy?]

The use of medical antiarrhythmic therapy apart from beta-blockers has been steadily decreasing in the recent past. This can partly be attributed to technological progress that has rendered the ablation of complex cardiac arrhythmias like atrial fibrillation, focal atrial tachycardias and ventricular arrhythmias feasible and efficacious. Furthermore, an awareness regarding pro-arrhythmic and toxic side-effects of antiarrhythmic medication has evolved. Nevertheless, medical antiarrhythmic therapy still plays a fundamental role in acute therapy of arrythmias as well as certain indications for long-term therapy. This review comprehensively summarizes the current role of medical antiarrhythmic therapy in daily clinical practice focusing on mechanisms and therapies of the most common cardiac arrythmias.