Drugs combination

[SpritzerAce]

Hi guys. Hope you are all keeping well. Just would like to know if anyone of you here is taking Sotalol Hcl and Diovan (Varsatan) to control your heart rhythm and BP. Would like to hear from you how is your experience with this combo. Thank you.

[AQuilter]

I'm on sotalol since April when I was diagnosed but it's not recommended on NICE list. Yet I'm so well with it at 40mg twice a day

[Cat04 in reply to AQuilter]

NICE info on sotalol for AF updated Nov 2018

bnf.nice.org.uk/drug/sotalo...

NHS info on sotalol

nhs.uk/medicines/sotalol/

[Cat04]

Hi again SpritzerAce - been on 80mg sotalol twice daily for over a year now, it works really well as both a rate and arrhythmia control. My BP is labile and I have postural hypotension so can get great differences in my readings, only feel ill when it drops too low (under 100 systolic).

[Cat04 in reply to Cat04]

Just been researching NHS drug costs and Sotalol is nearly 10 times the cost of atenolol and bisoprolol, maybe that accounts for the reluctance of doctors to prescribe it as they always go for the cheapest option for the job.

[sleeksheep in reply to Cat04]

This is from 2018 patient management update NZ / Aus :

Sotalol should not be used for rate control in atrial fibrillation due to its pro-arrhythmic action.

Sotalol is used exclusively for rhythm control in patients with supraventricular and ventricular arrhythmias, but use has declined since the SWORD (survival with oral d-sotalol) study in the 1990s was discontinued when it was found that sotalol was associated with a higher rate of sudden death when administered to patients after myocardial infarction.

Alternatives for rhythm control include flecainide in younger patients or amiodarone in older patients.