Amiodarone (Cordarone)
Class III antiarrhythmic with properties of all four Vaughan-Williams classes — blocks potassium channels (III), sodium channels (I), L-type calcium channels (IV), and beta-adrenergic receptors (II). Extremely long half-life (25-110 days, mean 58d) due to extensive tissue distribution (Vd 60 L/kg) and high lipophilicity. Contains 37% iodine by weight; can cause thyroid dysfunction, pulmonary fibrosis, corneal deposits, and hepatotoxicity. Potent CYP3A4/2C9/2D6 and P-gp inhibitor — warfarin, digoxin, and statin interactions are clinically critical and persist for weeks to months after discontinuation.
Projected serum levels — 200 mg, once daily
Maintenance schedule: 200 mg once daily (oral).
Loading schedule: 600 mg on day 1, then 200 mg once daily — reaching therapeutic levels sooner.
Modeled steady state after ~98 days: peak ≈ 6.4k mg, trough ≈ 6.4k mg body load. Population-based estimate over 121 days for a 200 mg dose at a 70 kg reference body mass — the interactive app scales curves to your doses, timing, and body mass.
Key facts
- Category
- Antiarrhythmic
- Route modeled
- Oral
- Model confidence
- inferred
- Half-life
- 58 days
- Common dose
- 200 mg
- Suggested maximum
- 400 mg/day
- Reference dose range
- 100–400 mg (single dose)
- Suggested cadence
- once daily
- Validated against
- 400 mg oral — Cmax 1.8 mg/L at 5 h
Research behind this entry
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A comparison of rate control and rhythm control in patients with atrial fibrillation
Landmark AFFIRM trial (n=4,060) comparing rate vs rhythm control in AF. Amiodarone was the most commonly used antiarrhythmic (63% of rhythm-control arm). Rhythm control provided no survival advantage over rate control.…
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Amiodarone or an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator for congestive heart failure
Landmark SCD-HeFT trial (n=2,521) in NYHA II-III HFrEF. ICD reduced all-cause mortality by 23% vs placebo; amiodarone showed no mortality benefit over placebo. Established ICD — not amiodarone — as standard for primary…
2 published studies referenced in the app, each with a plain-language summary.