Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Intravenous amiodarone treatment in horses with chronic atrial fibrillation.
- Journal:
- Veterinary journal (London, England : 1997)
- Year:
- 2006
- Authors:
- De Clercq, D et al.
- Affiliation:
- Department of Large Animal Internal Medicine
- Species:
- horse
Plain-English summary
In this study, six horses without any other heart problems were treated for chronic atrial fibrillation, a condition where the heart beats irregularly, lasting between 5 and 12 months. They received a medication called amiodarone through an IV, starting with a higher dose and then tapering down over a couple of days. While four of the horses returned to a normal heart rhythm, one experienced some weakness in their back legs, and two did not respond to the treatment and had similar side effects. Fortunately, all side effects went away within six hours after stopping the medication, and there were no serious heart-related issues. The researchers concluded that amiodarone could be a helpful treatment for this heart condition in horses, but more studies are needed to improve the treatment process.
Abstract
Six horses without underlying cardiac disease were presented because of atrial fibrillation of between 5 and 12 months duration. These horses received an intravenous amiodarone treatment of 5mg/kg/h for 1 h followed by 0.83mg/kg/h for 23h and subsequently 1.9mg/kg/h for 30h. During treatment, clinical signs were monitored and a surface ECG and an intra-atrial electrogram were recorded. Infusion was discontinued when sinus rhythm or side effects occurred. Four horses successfully cardioverted, of which one showed symptoms of hind limb weakness and weight shifting. Two horses did not cardiovert and showed similar side effects. In all horses, side effects disappeared within 6h after termination of treatment. Cardiac side effects, such as pro-arrhythmia, were not seen in any of the horses. Total bilirubin slightly increased in three horses and normalised within four days. It was concluded that amiodarone has the potential to treat naturally occurring chronic atrial fibrillation in horses, although further research is needed to refine the infusion protocol.
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Search related cases →Original publication: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15908245/