Successful treatment of bepridil-induced intraoperative torsades de pointes by isoproterenol infusion

Ken Shimano; Kyungho Chang; Yoshiki Hara; Atsushi Yasuda; Shigehito Sawamura

doi:10.1186/s40981-021-00475-3

Successful treatment of bepridil-induced intraoperative torsades de pointes by isoproterenol infusion

JA Clin Rep. 2021 Oct 13;7(1):76. doi: 10.1186/s40981-021-00475-3.

Authors

Ken Shimano¹, Kyungho Chang¹, Yoshiki Hara¹, Atsushi Yasuda¹, Shigehito Sawamura²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Anesthesia and Critical Care, Teikyo University School of Medicine, 2-11-1 Kaga, Itabashi, Tokyo, 173-8606, Japan.
² Department of Anesthesia and Critical Care, Teikyo University School of Medicine, 2-11-1 Kaga, Itabashi, Tokyo, 173-8606, Japan. sawamura@med.teikyo-u.ac.jp.

Abstract

Background: Several types of antiarrhythmic drugs are known to induce QT prolongation and torsades de pointes.

Case presentation: An 84-year-old man was scheduled for open gastrectomy for residual cancer. He had been prescribed bepridil for atrial fibrillation that converted to sinus rhythm with prolonged QT interval in the operating room. After the surgery was initiated under general and epidural anesthesia, the patient's heart rate decreased to 50/min and multifocal premature ventricular contractions appeared, followed by several episodes of torsades de pointes, each lasting for 5 to 15 s. Infusion of isoproterenol was started (0.01 μg/kg/min), and the heart rate was maintained at around 80/min. Premature ventricular contractions disappeared, and torsades de pointes did not recur during the surgery. The operation was completed uneventfully. The serum bepridil concentration was found to be extremely high postoperatively.

Conclusions: Bepridil-induced intraoperative episodes of torsades de pointes were successfully treated by increasing the heart rate with isoproterenol.

Keywords: Bepridil; Bradycardia; Isoproterenol; QT interval; Torsades de pointes.