Ital Heart J. 2002 Nov; 3(11): 689-91.

Ginkgo biloba-induced frequent ventricular arrhythmia.

Cianfrocca C, Pelliccia F, Auriti A, Santini M.

Department of Cardiac Diseases, San Filippo Neri Hospital, Rome, Italy. c.cianfrocca@mclink.it

The use of herbal medications is becoming ever more widespread, but data for them are not yet as robust as for conventional drugs. The available safety information indicates that potential side effects of such use can be due to allergic reactions and bleeding. In this report, a case of frequent ventricular arrhythmias probably due to Ginkgo biloba is presented. The patient complained of palpitations twice in a month and on both occasions symptoms and electrocardiographic evidence of ventricular arrhythmias resolved with discontinuation of Ginkgo biloba. This case underlines that continuing research is needed to elucidate the pharmacological activities of the many herbal remedies now being used.