Study on QT Dispersion and Clinical Effects of Sotalol and Propafenone on Patients with Arrhythmia

Objective To compare the clinical effect and QT dispersion of sotalol and propafenone before and after drug treatment in patients with arrhythmia. Methods Sixty cases of arrhythmia were randomly divided into sotalol group and propafenone group.Sotalol group started from a dose at 40 mg per time,2 times per day,if invalid one week after treatment we gradually increased the dosage with an increased single dose at 40 mg/time,the most massive dosage no more than 120 mg/time,2 times per day.Propafenone group was treated with propafenone alone,starting with a dose at 150 mg/time,three times a day,with a single increased dose 7 days after first drug administration.Maximum dosage was 900 mg/d.The treatment lasted seven weeks.During the treatment,no other anti-arrhythmic drugs were given. Results The effective rates of sotalol and propafenone groups were 80% and 70%,respectively.No statistically significant difference was found between the two groups(P0.05).Sotalol group showed significant difference in QTd before and after drug administration(P0.05),while propafenone group showed no significant difference in QTd before and after drug administration(P0.05).There was also statistically significant difference in QTd between sotalol and propafenone groups after drug administration(P0.05). Conclusions Sotalol can cause the reduced QTd,which may be the important factor for better effect compared with propafenone.