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Digitalis Bradycardia

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Digitalis bradycardia is a potential negative side effect of treatment with digitalis, a powerful agent that has toxic properties at high doses. Digitalis is used to treat cardiac problems, and bradycardia is the medical term for an abnormally slow heart beat.

The Many Forms of Digitalis
Digitalis is a generic term for a drug that is derived from a flower of the same name. Digitalis has been used for centuries to treat the swelling that often accompanies congestive heart failure, and in more recent years, digitalis has been marketed under the names Digitek, Lanoxin, and Digitaline Nativelle (in Canada), among others.

Digitek, for example, is widely used throughout the U.S. for heart failure and abnormal heart rhythms in adult and pediatric patients.

Digitalis Side Effects Include Bradycardia
Digitalis drugs may be tablet, capsule, or liquid form. The dosage of the digitalis is very important. Even at the intended dose prescribed by an experienced physician, a patient is at risk for several side effects of digitalis, which include:

  • vision problems
  • dizziness
  • heart rate fluctuations — irregular heartbeat, including bradycardia

Ironically, digitalis is used to treat bradycardia, and it may also cause bradycardia. Digitalis increases the strength of the heart muscles’ contraction, and thus digitalis drugs are used to slow down the heart, making it contract more effectively and more slowly. However, too much digitalis (or more accurately, too much of the active ingredient, digoxin) can cause the heart rate to slow down too far.

Signs of Digitalis Bradycardia
Digitalis bradycardia can be a very dangerous medical event. Bradycardia can be fatal. If you’ve been treated with a digitalis drug such as Digitek, and you experience bradycardia and/or other symptoms of digitalis toxicity —

  • nausea
  • vomiting
  • dizziness
  • diarrhea
  • jaundiced (yellow-tinged) vision
  • blurred outlines (halos)

— seek medical attention immediately.

Talk to an Attorney about Digitalis Bradycardia
If you’ve been treated with a digitalis drug and developed bradycardia, learn more about your legal rights as a patient: contact us today to learn more.

 

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