Background According to the 1992 version of ACLS guideline, adenosine is recommended as the first line drug for the treatment of paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia(PSVT). But adenosine is not used fiequently in our country, despite currently proven effect and safety Therefore we tried to compare the efficacy and safety of adenosine with verapamil for the treatment for PSVT. Materials and Methods. We prospectively reviewed charts of PSVT patients admitted to YongDong Severance Hospital from Jan 1995 to Dec 1996 These patients were randomly divided into two groups. The first group was given 6mg of adenosine initially, and another 12mg was given within 5 minutes if first dose failed The other group was given 5mg of verapamil initially, and if failed, 10mg was given within 10 minutes. The results were analyzed by Chi-square test and student-t method Results In converting PSVT to normal rhythm, adenosine and verapamil showed similar results and there was no difference between the two groups in fiequecy of side effects, but serious arrhythmia such as ventricular fibrillation and ventricular tachycardia was not seen in the adenosine group. Conclusion Adenosine not only showed comparable effect and safety, but also had shorter action time tban vera- pamil, Therefpre we recommand adenosine, as a safe and effective first line drug for PSVT