[New drugs; ivabradine].

Ivabradine lowers the heart rate by inhibiting the cardiac pacemaker current that is responsible for diastolic depolarisation. The most important side effect is the appearance of light flashes (phosphenes). The agent can be used in patients with angina pectoris when beta-blockers are insufficiently effective, provided that the heart rate is at least 60 beats per minute at the beginning of the treatment.