The pharmacologic approach to patients at risk of sudden cardiac death: not only antiarrhythmic drugs

Sudden cardiac death (SCD) is the most common cause of death in developed western countries.1,2 More than 3 million people are thought to die from SCD each year, worldwide, with a survival rate lower than 1%.2 Whereas a drop was recorded in total cardiac mortality in the USA between 1989 and 1999, the proportion of deaths with the characteristics of SCD increased by up to 47%.3