Tag: adverse effects of antipsychotics

Cancer Risk Higher for Those on Clozapine

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The antipsychotic clozapine, considered the “gold-standard” treatment for psychosis, was found to increase the risk of blood and lymph system cancers.

Mental Health Survival Kit, Chapter 2: Is Psychiatry Evidence Based? (Part...

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It requires extraordinary mental gymnastics by psychiatrists to conclude that neuroleptics, which cause obesity, metabolic dysfunction, diabetes, tardive dyskinesia, lethal cardiac arrhythmias, and so on, protect against death.

The Latest “Breakthrough Therapy”: Expensive New Drugs for Tardive Dyskinesia

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The increased prescribing of antipsychotics, which frequently cause a brain injury that manifests as tardive dyskinesia, has provided pharmaceutical companies with a lucrative new market opportunity.

New Research Suggests Brain Abnormalities in ‘Schizophrenia’ May Result From Antipsychotics

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Study finds that reduced cortical thickness and brain surface area associated with 'schizophrenia' may result from antipsychotic drug use.

Antipsychotics, Restraints, and Seclusion Raising Concerns

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From ABC Australia: Australia's high rate of antipsychotic prescriptions, as well as the frequent usage of restraints and seclusion, has raised concerns among Australian mental health advocates, researchers,...

Study Identifies Cause of Weight Gain From Antipsychotic Drugs

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From UPI: A team of researchers from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center found that the serotonin 2c receptor is responsible for weight gain...

Vanda Puts Antipsychotic Side Effect Front and Center in TV Ads

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From FiercePharma: Vanda Pharmaceuticals, which makes the antipsychotic drug Fanapt, has recently rolled out a national TV campaign to raise awareness of akathisia. The company...

Remains of Missing 24-Year-Old Dad Found in Coast Guard Boat

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From Yahoo! News: Nine months ago, Matt Amsler, a 24-year-old father, mysteriously disappeared after undergoing a bad reaction to antipsychotics. His body has been found...

Significant Growth of Antipsychotics Market Foreseen

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From Persistent Market Research: The global antipsychotics market is expected to grow significantly by 2021, with especially high growth rates in Europe and Asia. However,...

Dementia Patients at Risk of Injury or Death Due to Antipsychotics

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From The Independent: Thousands of people with Lewy Body Dementia are being prescribed antipsychotic drugs, increasing their risk of death fourfold. "These medicines, prescribed to around...

Joanna Moncrieff: Psychiatric Drug Mechanisms of Action

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We discuss Doctor Moncrieff’s work to address the realities of psychiatric drugs and the groundbreaking RADAR study which focuses on antipsychotic drugs.

Robert Whitaker Refutes Jeffrey Lieberman; But Is Psychiatry Reformable?

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When the neuroleptics-are-necessary-to-treat-schizophrenia myth falls, psychiatry is finished. And that is why the Goff et al paper was produced: a desperate attempt to maintain its position by a profession that is truly on the ropes. For psychiatry this is a death-struggle.

Psychiatry Defends Its Antipsychotics: A Case Study of Institutional Corruption

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Jeffrey LIeberman and colleagues have published a paper in the American Journal of Psychiatry stating that there is no evidence that psychiatric drugs cause long-term harm, and that the evidence shows that these drugs provide a great benefit to patients. A close examination of their review reveals that it is a classic example of institutional corruption, which was meant to protect guild interests.

Inconvenient Truths About Antipsychotics: A Response to Goff et al

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The most worrying thing about the Goff et al paper is the minimisation of the evidence that antipsychotics produce brain shrinkage. There are no studies that show progressive brain changes in people diagnosed with schizophrenia or psychosis in the absence of antipsychotic treatment.

Responding to Claims that the Benefits of Antipsychotics Outweigh the Risks

For my doctorate research, I talked with 144 people who take or have taken antipsychotics and a third reported overall positive experiences. Another third said quite the opposite, and I can hear them yelling at me to share their side of the story.

We Need to Talk About Frankie

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In this piece for The Cut, Dyan Neary details the story of Frankie Perry, a man whose life was forever altered by being prescribed an...

Not Going Quietly

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A few years ago, I was asked to see a man called Chris Rushworth. He was referred to me for anger issues. Chris had a restlessness about him, frequently shifting his legs from side to side. He had been on antipsychotic medication for 25 years.

Safety Analysis Weighs Harms and Benefits of Antipsychotic Drugs

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The researchers find that the drug effects for reducing psychosis are small and that treatment failure and severe side effects are common.

The Case for Neuroleptics Reducing Recovery from 80% to 5%

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On October 7th I gave a talk titled "The Transformation Triangle: Public Education, Alternatives & Strategic Litigation." In thinking about my talk, I realized that I could piece together a very short video on neuroleptics reducing the recovery rate from 80% to 5%.

Royal College of Psychiatrists Still not Interested in Discussing Important Evidence...

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The annual meeting of the UK’s Royal College of Psychiatrists is in full swing at the moment in London. The conference will again not be debating important new findings about antipsychotic drug treatment. Two years ago the conference organising committee rejected a suggestion to discuss this issue. This year I proposed a similar symposium. The proposal was rejected again. I am extremely concerned that the Royal College conference organising committee do not appear to be aware of the importance of this issue.

Moving Forward in the Science of Psychiatric Medication Discontinuation/Reduction

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This week Live & Learn launched a research study on the experience of people labeled with mental disorders who have tried to stop taking psychiatric medications. This project -- the Psychiatric Medication Discontinuation/Reduction (PMDR) Study -- aims to understand the process of coming off psychiatric medications in order to better support those who choose to do so. The study seeks to answer the question: What helps people stop their psychiatric medications? What gets in the way of stopping?

The Evidence-Based Mind of Psychiatry on Display

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The writings of Pies and his colleagues, I believe, provide a compelling case study of cognitive dissonance. Cognitive dissonance arises when people are presented with information that creates conflicted psychological states, challenging some belief they hold dear, and people typically resolve dissonant states by sifting through information in ways that protect their self-esteem and their financial interests. It is easy to see that process operating here.

New Research into Antipsychotic Discontinuation And Reduction: the RADAR programme

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For a long time I have felt that there just isn’t a good enough and long enough study on the pros and cons of long-term antipsychotic treatment versus reduction and discontinuation in people who have psychotic disorders, including those who are classified as having schizophrenia. Moreover, there are increasing reasons to be worried about the effects of long-term treatment with antipsychotics. I put this case to the UK’s National Institute of Health Research recently, and proposed that they fund a trial to assess the long-term outcomes of a gradual programme of antipsychotic reduction compared with standard ‘maintenance treatment.’ The NIHR agreed that this was an important issue, and that a new trial was urgently needed. The RADAR (Research into Antipsychotic Discontinuation And Reduction) study officially started in January 2016.