Proarytmiakoja

Proarytmiakoja is a Finnish term used to describe agents, conditions, or factors that promote arrhythmias. The word appears in Finnish-language medical discussions and is not part of a single standardized international nomenclature. It is typically used to refer to elements that increase the probability of an abnormal heart rhythm rather than elements that cause arrhythmias by a single mechanism.

In medical context, proarytmiakoja encompasses proarrhythmic factors that raise arrhythmia risk through electrophysiological changes. Mechanisms include blockade or modulation of cardiac ion channels, QT interval prolongation, afterdepolarizations, and triggered activity that can initiate or sustain arrhythmias. Common categories include certain medications with known proarrhythmic potential, electrolyte disturbances such as hypokalemia and hypomagnesemia, bradycardia in combination with QT-prolonging drugs, ischemia, and structural heart disease.

Examples often discussed are drugs with proarrhythmic risk, especially some antiarrhythmics (class Ia and some class III agents), and non-cardiac medications that prolong the QT interval (certain macrolide antibiotics, some fluoroquinolones, and some psychotropic drugs). Risk is influenced by dose, concurrent illnesses, electrolyte status, and genetic predisposition such as congenital long QT syndrome.

Assessment and management focus on monitoring and mitigating risk, including ECG surveillance, correcting electrolyte abnormalities, avoiding combinations of QT-prolonging drugs, and considering risk stratification approaches. In pharmacology and drug development, broader frameworks like proarrhythmia risk assessment are used to evaluate potential risks.

See also proarrhythmia, QT prolongation, torsades de pointes, antiarrhythmic drugs.