Long-term adverse effects of novel antipsychotics

The introduction of novel antipsychotics for the treatment of patients with serious psychiatric illness has alleviated the burden of managing some of the side effects of conventional agents. However, the novel agents may also cause adverse events. The long-term adverse events of concern include weight gain, diabetes, tardive dyskinesia (TD), and those associated with hyperprolactinemia. Recent studies with the novel agents have prompted clinicians to revisit antipsychotic-induced weight gain. Clinically significant weight gain puts patients at risk for coronary heart disease, hypertension, type II diabetes, dyslipidemia, and some types of cancer. More recently, case reports of glucose abnormalities and diabetes have emerged, indicating that some novel antipsychotics may be associated with altered glucose metabolism or insulin sensitivity. The novel antipsychotics may also have a lower propensity for causing TD than the conventional antipsychotics. Side effects associated with hyperprolactinemia include galactorrhea, gynecomastia, and menstrual and sexual dysfunction. All of these adverse events can cause patients to become non-compliant and may thus predispose them to relapse. In this review, the authors summarize the literature on the long-term side effects of the novel antipsychotics and examine the severity of the problem, with recommendations for management. When selecting treatments, clinicians should consider the side-effect profiles of the various antipsychotic agents.