[Incidence of side effects in digitalis therapy]

In a literature research program concerning side effects during digitalis therapy 75 publications had been evaluated. Comparing 15 drug monitoring studies with different types of drugs, cytostatics, antibiotics and analgetics most frequently led to side effects. Digitalis glycosides ranged on the place 3-9. Adverse reactions rates up to 20% had been observed in hospitalized patients. The average of all data, however, was near 10%. Because of their generally low-risk rate of intoxication ambulant patients--with 96-97% glycoside prescriptions the dominant part of digitalis recipients--evidently had a lower incidence of adverse reactions. In this group of patients the rate of side effects ranged about 3% for digoxin and digitoxin, respectively. Comparative clinical studies with digoxin and digitoxin showed no signs of differences in the rate of adverse reactions between these two digitalis glycosides.