This article may not discuss a medicine that you have been prescribed. I advise all of my patients to save a package insert from their medicines in a folder. If you think you are experiencing a side effect, you can quickly check to see whether your medicine may be causing it. This is a useful practice for all of your medicines, not just antiarrhythmics. However, I will warn you that package inserts will list many, many side-effects (or adverse reactions). This does not necessarily mean that the medicine is as dangerous as it sounds, since many side effects (such as headache, dizziness, fatigue, nausea, etc.) occur even with placebo (fake) pills during research studies. Nevertheless, you should understand each and every medicine you use and bring up any concerns with your doctor. Always speak with your doctor before starting or stopping any prescription or over-the-counter medicine.
Beta-Blockers
Beta-blockers may be the most common antiarrhythmic medicines used by doctors. They block the nervous system from exciting the heart and tend to slow the heart rate slightly. These medicines are used for treating high blood pressure, coronary artery disease, and congestive heart failure in addition to arrhythmias. Part of the reason they are such helpful medicines for patients with coronary artery disease and congestive heart failure is that they help prevent cardiac arrhythmias.
Some examples of beta-blockers include propranolol (Inderal), metoprolol (Lopressor or Toprol XL), atenolol (Tenormin), nadolol (Corgard), timolol (Blocadren), bisoprolol (Zebeta), labetolol, (Normodyne or Trandate) and carvedilol (Coreg).
