Efficacy and safety of low-dose propranolol versus diltiazem in the prophylaxis of supraventricular tachyarrhythmia after coronary artery bypass grafting.

Objective. Supraventricu- lar tachyarrhythmias (SVT) compli- cate postoperative management after coronary bypass surgery in about 30% of all patients. Though a pro- phylactic treatment both with/~-adre- nergic blocking agents and the cal- cium antagonist diltiazem has been used for the prevention of post-oper- ative SVT, no study yet has per- formed a prospective comparison of the efficacy of these therapies. Methods. To investigate the prophy- lactic effect of either a calcium an- tagonist (diltiazem, 0_1 mg/kg per h i_v.) or a/~-adrenergic blocking agent (propranolol, 10 mg every 6 h post-