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Newer Antipsychotics Pose Cardiac Risk: Study
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Page: << Prev | 1 | 2 The researchers also looked at the records of 186,600 people who didn't use antipsychotic drugs.
They found that users of the newer drugs were 2.26 times more likely to suffer from sudden cardiac death than those not on the medications. Those who used the older drugs were 1.99 times more likely to die versus those not taking the medications.
Patients who took the highest doses were at the highest risk. Overall, the patients had a three-in-1,000 risk of sudden cardiac death a year, Ray said.
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The numbers may seem low, but they're significant, Ray said. "If I were talking to a friend or family member, I'd advise them to avoid [the drugs] if possible."
The drugs appear to cause problems by disrupting potassium in the heart, causing its electrical rhythm to fail, Ray said.
Dr. Sebastian Schneeweiss, an associate professor of medicine and epidemiology at the Harvard School of Public Health, co-wrote an accompanying commentary in the journal. He said that, considering the risk and lack of evidence that the drugs are useful beyond limited cases, doctors should "sharply" reduce their use to treat conditions other than acute psychosis and schizophrenia.
More information
Learn more about the new antipsychotic drugs from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
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Copyright © 2009 ScoutNews, LLC. All rights reserved.
Last updated 1/14/2009
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SOURCES: Wayne Ray, Ph.D., director, Division of Pharmacoepidemiology, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville; Sebastian Schneeweiss, M.D., associate professor of medicine and epidemiology, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston; Jan. 15, 2009, New England Journal of Medicine
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