Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2009:2009:bcr06.2008.0218.
doi: 10.1136/bcr.06.2008.0218. Epub 2009 Mar 6.

Amiodarone induced acute interstitial pneumonitis

Thanigaiarsu Thiyagarajan  1 , Vijay Mahajan, Srinivas Katragadda, Priya Kumaraguru
Affiliations

Amiodarone induced acute interstitial pneumonitis

Thanigaiarsu Thiyagarajan et al. BMJ Case Rep. 2009.

Abstract

Amiodarone has several potentially fatal toxicities, the most important of which is amiodarone pulmonary toxicity (APT). We report a rare case where a patient developed acute interstitial pneumonitis 2 days after starting amiodarone. This report reveals the potential for rapid onset of APT and will help to increase awareness among health care professionals who very often underestimate the incidence of the toxic effects of amiodarone. A simple, cost effective screening tool to detect APT in its early stage is recommended.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Normal chest x ray.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Bilateral diffuse pulmonary infiltrate suggestive of acute interstitial pneumonitis.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Mason JW. Amiodarone. N Engl J Med 1987; 316: 455. - PubMed
    1. Martin WJ, Rosenow EC. Amiodarone pulmonary toxicity. Recognition and pathogenesis (part 1). Chest 1988; 93: 1067. - PubMed
    1. Wood DL, Osborn MJ, Rooke J, et al. Amiodarone pulmonary toxicity: report of two cases associated with rapidly progressive fatal respiratory distress syndrome after pulmonary angiography. Mayo Clin Proc 1985; 60: 601. - PubMed
    1. Martin WJ, Rosenow EC. Amiodarone pulmonary toxicity. Recognition and pathogenesis (part 2). Chest 1988; 93: 1242. - PubMed
    1. Zitnik RJ. Drug-induced lung disease: Antiarrhythmic agents. J Respir Dis 1996; 17: 254

LinkOut - more resources