Use
The membrane-stabilizing antiarrhythmic agent encainide was
introduced into medicine in the mid-1980's. The decision to delete the indications
for patients with asymptomatic and less severe symptomatic ventricular
arrhythmias was taken on the basis of the results of a trial (CAST study) that
showed a two-fold increase in deaths in post-myocardiac patients taking encainide
compared with the placebo group. (See also WHO comment for flecainide).