Family Practice Vol. 7, No. 1, 56-59
© Oxford University Press 1990
research-article |
Supervised Withdrawal of Long-Term Digoxin Therapy
Department of General Practice, Edinburgh University Scotland
Correspondence to 5/6 Hermitage Terrace, Edinburgh, EH10 4RP, Scotland
Fair JF. Supervised withdrawal of long-term digoxin therapy. Family Practice 1990; 7: 5659.
All 32 patients treated with digoxin for over three months in one practice population had treatment with drawn under supervision to assess its continued requirement. In 18 instances (56%) digoxin proved necessary and was restarted to correct clinical deterioration, while in 14 instances (44%) it was successfully discontinued. Successful withdrawal was more frequently achieved in those with sinus rhythm (91% of 14 patients) than in atrial fibrillation (19% of 21 patients). Where digoxin was required dosage increases were necessary to achieve optimum clinical control. Adherence to a strict protocol allows unnecessary therapy to be withdrawn and facilitates improved care where therapy is required, with accompanying savings in costs and time.