CISAPRIDE-INDUCED TORSADES-DE-POINTES

Two cases of torsades de pointes associated with cisapride are present ed, both in association with concomitant drug therapy that inhibits ci sapride biotransformation, In one case, plasma cisapride was elevated days after the event, strongly supporting a role for accumulation of t he drug in causing the arrhythmia, It is emphasized that these adverse drug reactions are not idiosyncratic, but rather are predictable base d on an understanding of the underlying mechanisms.