Amiodarone-induced thrombophlebitis was initially described in case reports.9-11 The graphic descriptions of marked tissue injury in these early reports gave reason for further evaluation of the incidence and clinical significance of thrombophlebitis.
In a prospective study of 20 patients receiving amiodarone for recent-onset atrial fibrillation, Kreiss et al5 found that thrombophlebitis was the most common side effect, occurring in 5 of the 20 patients (25%). Thrombophlebitis was the most common
adverse reaction associated with intravenous amiodarone, at a rate of 8% among 550 patients, in a metaanalysis of 18 random-controlled trials of patients with atrial fibrillation who received intravenous amiodarone. 12 In a retrospective review by Mowry and Hartman3 of 339 hospitalized patients who had received intravenous amiodarone, the incidence of thrombophlebitis was 10.6%.