Antipsychotics and Their Side Effects

With the remarkable expansion in use of antipsychotics, concerns about their immediate, intermediate, and long-term adverse effects have intensified. Despite this, studies consistently show that monitoring of patients taking antipsychotics can be inadequate, haphazard, or worse.

This book provides a comprehensive review of the adverse effects of this pharmacologically complex therapeutic class and provides the reader with information and resources to support early detection of adverse effects, key to ensuring their safe and effective long-term use. Both first- and second-generation antipsychotics are reviewed extensively.

In the first section, each chapter provides background information about an adverse effect, reviews the evidence linking the effect to various antipsychotics, and, most importantly, provides specific detection and monitoring recommendations. The intent is to inform clinicians about the various common, uncommon, and rare adverse effects caused by antipsychotics to support rational therapeutic decisions.

The second section provides unique monitoring guides for each antipsychotic. The third section provides the clinician with an overall monitoring program for patients taking antipsychotics long term.

By supporting rational treatment decisions and systematic adverse effect monitoring, Antipsychotics and their Side Effects provides the clinician with the necessary information and tools for optimising the safe and effective long-term use of these drugs.

• Provides detailed reviews on antipsychotic adverse effects, supporting rational drug therapy selections for individual patients
• Provides evidence-informed, practical suggestions on how to monitor for and detect specific side effects, improving the consistency and quality of patient care
• Provides a complete one-stop reference on the adverse effects of this family of drugs.

About the Author

David M. Gardner is Associate Professor, Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.
Michael D. Teehan is Associate Professor, Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.