Extent of use of QT interval prolonging drugs in psychiatry: A pilot study

Abstract

A number of drugs are capable of prolonging the QT interval either alone or in combination. Excessive prolonging of QT interval could lead to a potential life threatening fatal abnormal rhytm called Torsades de Pointes. Many antipsychotics drugs were found to have a detrimental effect on the QT interval. The increase in the incidence of sudden cardiac death has been found to be related to the antipsychotic treatment. Many patients taking these drugs mostly psychiatric patients posed to be at a greater risk of developing sudden cardiac death or TdP. Hence, clinicians prescribing these drugs to patients must be alert and aware of the dangerous effect these drugs have on the patients and if possible, to avoid prescribing drugs having with risk of developing QT interval prolonging effect as far as possible.