Comparative Study of Tocainide and Lidocaine in Patients Admitted for Suspected Acute Myocardial Infarction

. The antiarrhythmic effects of tocainide, administered as a bolus injection of 750 mg followed by oral therapy, and conventional Iidocaine therapy were evaluated in 40 patients admitted for suspected acute myocardial infarction (AMI) and showing high-grade premature ventricular complexes (PVCs). The mean hourly PVC rate before therapy was 928 and its reduction was equally significant in the tocainide group, 73%, and in the Iidocaine group, 68%. The number of 5-minute periods with multiform, paired and R/T PVCs or ventricular tachycardia was also significantly reduced, by 78% in the tocainide group and by 71 % in the Iidocaine group. Ten patients in the tocainide group reported moderate side-effects, compared to 13 in the Iidocaine group, where the infusion had to be discontinued in 5 patients and the rate had to be reduced in 4. Tocainide, an amine analogue of Iidocaine, is considered just as effective as Iidocaine in patients with high-grade PVCs and suspected AMI.