Amiodarone and pulmonary fibrosis

Abstract

Of 25 cases of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, confirmed by open chest lung biopsy between January 1979 and July 1981, 5 patients had been taking amiodarone in doses less than 600 mg daily for 1 to 6 years. No lung disease had been observed in any patient before the administration of amiodarone, and other drugs, factors and diseases thought to play a role in the causation of pulmonary fibrosis were ruled out. Two patients died of respiratory insufficiency, and only 1 does not now suffer from serious sequelae. Review of a further 5 cases reported in the literature and the present data suggest a causal link between administration of amiodarone and pulmonary fibrosis, and tend to indicate a hypersensitivity mechanism.

Amiodarone Pulmonary Toxicity

“…In some cases, there is little evidence of an inflammatory process and the predominant finding is nonspecific pulmonary fibrosis. This may be found after an episode of typical APT or be diagnosed in a patient on amiodarone when symptoms become apparent in the absence of an acute antecedent event (10,25).…”