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encainide

encainide

9.9
A medicine that treats dangerous irregular heartbeats but can raise the risk of sudden death after a heart attack
  • noun
  • /ˈɛnkeɪnaɪd/
  • Specialized
translation icon : encainida
  • Doctors prescribed encainide to control his life-threatening arrhythmia.

Examples

  • Research showed that encainide increases the risk of sudden death in some heart attack survivors.

  • Many hospitals stopped using encainide after concerns about its safety emerged.

  • The doctor prescribed encainide for her heart condition.

  • Some patients may react poorly to encainide.

  • The cardiologist explained that encainide is effective for treating serious irregular heart rhythms.

  • After thorough evaluation, the team determined that encainide could be risky for patients with a history of heart attacks.

  • She was relieved when her doctor said that encainide could help her manage her arrhythmia.

Synonyms

Enkaid
vsencainide
  • Archaic
9.9

A medicine once used to treat dangerous heart rhythm problems that was later stopped for safety reasons

is the generic drug name that increases sudden death risk in heart attack patients

Surface Forms

encainide singular
encainides plural

Etymology

Encainide is a modern chemical drug name: the ending -ide shows it is a 'chemical' name and the middle encain- is a made‑up stem for this medicine. So, a helpful way to remember encainide is to think of it as a strong 'heart rhythm' drug that controls dangerous beats but must be used with care because it can increase risk.