On Multaq For Atrial Fibrillation. But Again Have Afib And Put On Amiodarone. Suggest?

Posted on Fri, 27 Sep 2013

Medically reviewed by Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team

Fri, 27 Sep 2013 Answered on

Wed, 16 Oct 2013 Last reviewed on

Question : Ihave been on Multaq for A.Fib. My EKG's lately tell the cardiologist that I'm in A Fib again. He says the Multaq is not working. Wants to put me on Amiodarone. I don't want to take this drug. Is there any other drug out there in place of Amiodarone. Thanks

Answered by Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar (5 hours later)

Brief Answer:
Many options

Detailed Answer:
Hi,

There are many options to convert A.Fib if Dronedarone (Multaq) does not work. Definitely Amiodarone is the first choice that doctors opt. If you do not like to have it because of its side effect profile you can opt for a lot of drugs like Dofetilide, Ibutilide, quinidine, Procainamide.

Of which the best option depends on refractory Afib, presence of heart disease, Left ventricular enlargement, presence of high blood pressure and how long the Afib been. So let the physician give you choice and side effect profile and you can discuss the pros and cons before agreeing on one.

Hope this answers.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Aparna Kohli