Amiodarone (Cordarone, Pacerone)
ATI-format individual drug card with NCLEX-focused assessment, safety, teaching, and source attribution.
CardiacRespiratoryEndocrineEye / Earneeds review
Amiodarone (Cordarone, Pacerone)
ATI class: Antiarrhythmic / Class III potassium channel blocker
Action
- ATI/source-folder candidate for Amiodarone (Cordarone, Pacerone); verify mechanism against the source table before validation.
Therapeutic use
- Review under Anti-arrhythmics medication safety.
Nursing assessment
- Monitor ECG/rhythm, apical pulse, blood pressure, QT interval, potassium, and magnesium.
- Assess lung sounds, cough, dyspnea, thyroid symptoms, liver labs, vision changes, and skin changes.
- Review interacting QT-prolonging drugs and anticoagulants.
Administration
- Verify route against the order and source table.
Side effects
- Verify common side effects against the source table.
Adverse effects
- Pulmonary toxicity
- QT prolongation
- Bradycardia
- Hypotension with IV therapy
- Thyroid dysfunction
- Liver toxicity
- Corneal deposits or vision changes
- Photosensitivity
Interactions
- Warfarin
- Digoxin
- Beta blockers
- Diltiazem or verapamil
- Other QT-prolonging drugs
- Grapefruit products
Contraindications
- See source-specific contraindications and precautions before administration.
Precautions
- Severe sinus-node dysfunction, significant AV block without pacing, or cardiogenic shock.
- Use caution with pulmonary disease, thyroid disease, liver disease, electrolyte imbalance, and concurrent QT-prolonging medications.
Client teaching
- Report new cough, shortness of breath, fainting, palpitations, yellowing skin, severe fatigue, or vision changes.
- Use sun protection.
- Keep scheduled lung, thyroid, liver, eye, ECG, and lab monitoring appointments.
Medication outcomes
- Therapeutic response with no priority adverse effects.
Antidote / rescue
- No specific antidote is seeded; hold/question unsafe doses and manage toxicity per provider, facility, or poison-control guidance.
NCLEX priority cues
- New dyspnea or cough can signal pulmonary toxicity.
- Low potassium or magnesium increases dysrhythmia risk.
- QT prolongation can lead to torsades.
Medication classes
Source attribution
Google Drive source topic: Anti-arrhythmics
google-drive
Sentinel pharmacology API reference
sentinel-api
Manual ATI-format NCLEX candidate normalization
manual-seed
Related study cards
Shows the medication class, ATI cues, source references, and connected study cards for this drug.
Med classmedication class
Antiarrhythmics
Changes cardiac electrical conduction to terminate or prevent unsafe rhythms.
ATI cueClass
Antiarrhythmic
ATI medication class concept.
ATI cueNursing Assessment
Assess lung sounds, cough, dyspnea, thyroid symptoms, liver labs, vision changes, and skin changes.
ATI medication nursing assessment concept.
ATI cueMechanism of Action
ATI/source-folder candidate for Amiodarone (Cordarone, Pacerone); verify mechanism against the source table before validation.
ATI medication mechanism of action concept.
ATI cueInteraction
Beta blockers
ATI medication interaction concept.
ATI cueAdverse Effect
Bradycardia
ATI medication adverse effect concept.
ATI cueClass
Class III potassium channel blocker
ATI medication class concept.
ATI cueAdverse Effect
Corneal deposits or vision changes
ATI medication adverse effect concept.
ATI cueInteraction
Digoxin
ATI medication interaction concept.
ATI cueInteraction
Diltiazem or verapamil
ATI medication interaction concept.
ATI cueInteraction
Grapefruit products
ATI medication interaction concept.
ATI cueAdverse Effect
Hypotension with IV therapy
ATI medication adverse effect concept.