Clinical pharmacology and classification of antiarrhythmic drugs.

Despite major contemporary strides in the treatment of cardiac arrhythmia, the bedrock for many patients management is still rooted in chronic drug therapy. In the last 10 years considerable changes in patterns of drug use has affected every aspect of these agents down to the basic level of drug classification and assessment of their clinical pharmacology. This review looks at the systems of antiarrhythmic drug classification currently used and the rationale for adopting newer approaches.