BACKGROUND:

There is still lack of strong evidence, based on systematic studies, that support the relationship between amiodarone use and the risk of acute pancreatitis.

OBJECTIVE:

The aim of this study was to explore the relationship between amiodarone use and the risk of acute pancreatitis in Taiwan.

METHODS:

This case-control study was based on the analysis of the claim data from Taiwan's national health insurance program from 2000 to 2011. There were 4986 subjects aged 20-84 years with a first episode of acute pancreatitis as the case group and 19,944 randomly selected subjects without acute pancreatitis matched for sex, age, and index year as the control group. Amiodarone use was defined as "current," "recent," or "past" if the most recent amiodarone prescription was filled within 3 months, between 3 and 6 months, or >6 months before the date of acute pancreatitis diagnosis, respectively. The relative risk of acute pancreatitis associated with amiodarone use was measured by the odds ratio with 95% confidence interval using the multivariable unconditional logistic regression model.

RESULTS:

After adjustment for confounding factors, current use of amiodarone was positively associated with acute pancreatitis (adjusted odds ratio 5.21; 95% confidence interval 3.22-8.43). There was no significant association between recent or past amiodarone use and acute pancreatitis.

CONCLUSION:

People with current use of amiodarone are at an increased risk of acute pancreatitis. Physicians should be more cautious about acute pancreatitis risk when prescribing amiodarone.