Digoxin is used in people with heart failure because of its ability to increase the force of heart muscle myocardial contraction , which improves its pumping power. It also decreases oxygen consumption, which helps the heart do more with less oxygen. Digoxin works by inhibiting the sodium pump within heart muscle cells. This increases sodium in the cells, which in turn increases calcium content, leading to increased force of heart contractions.
Digoxin also has effects on electrical activity in the heart and is most widely used in people with abnormal heart rhythm atrial fibrillation. It has also been previously used to treat the symptoms of congestive heart failure. Foxglove extract has been used for hundreds of years for a range of health conditions — all related to fluid retention in the heart, lungs and legs. In the modern era , digoxin was considered, for many years, the mainstay of treatment for people with heart failure.
However, this has changed over the last decade as it has been replaced as first-line treatment with other medicines which are generally safer to use and known to improve patient survival. Evidence from clinical trials found treatment with digoxin did not reduce mortality in people with heart failure.
The drug is now recommended as second-line treatment for people with severe heart failure who also have heart rhythm problems. Charles Edmund Cullen, a nurse who may be the most prolific serial killer in American history, used digoxin as his poison of choice. He was arrested in after a year murder spree. He reports killing at least 40 patients, but evidence suggests that he may actually be responsible for hundreds of deaths.
Marissa Fox, Assistant Editor mfox mjhlifesciences. Gabrielle Ientile, Assistant Editor gientile mjhlifesciences. William Culberson, National Accounts Manager wculberson mjhlifesciences. Business Strategies. Customer Experience. Buyers' Exchange. Resource Centers. Log In. Log in.
Forgot your password? We will not share your email with anyone. Password must be at least 8 characters. Show or Hide the password you are typing. Here, processing facilities macerate the leaves and extract digitalis using an aqueous-alcohol solvent.
Further treatment and processing yields powdered digoxin, which is compounded into tablets, injectable solutions, elixirs, and capsules. It takes about 1, kg of dried foxglove leaves to make 1 kg of pure digoxin, the company adds. This article was corrected on July 31, , to reflect that Withering did not name the woman in his report. Contact the reporter. Submit a Letter to the Editor for publication.
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