Secondary effects of antipsychotics: women at greater risk than men.
BACKGROUND
The health burden of antipsychotic medication is well known, but the disproportionate effect on women as compared with men is underappreciated.


OBJECTIVE
The goal of this article is preventive--to better inform clinicians so that the risks to women and to their offspring can be diminished.


METHODS
All PubMed sources in which the search term gender (or sex) was linked to a side effect of antipsychotic medication were reviewed.


RESULTS
There is general agreement in the literature on women's increased susceptibility to weight gain, diabetes, and specific cardiovascular risks of antipsychotics, with less consensus on malignancy risks and risks to the fetus. Cardiovascular death, to which men are more susceptible than women, is disproportionately increased in women by the use of antipsychotics. Sedating antipsychotics raise the risk of embolic phenomena during pregnancy, and postpartum. Prolactin-elevating drugs suppress gonadal hormone secretion and may enhance autoimmune proclivity.


CONCLUSIONS
Clinicians need to be aware of the differential harm that women (and their offspring) can incur from the side effects of antipsychotics.
Seeman
Mary V
MV
Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto. mary.seeman@utoronto.ca
D014150:Antipsychotic Agents / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D001327:Autoimmune Diseases / Q000139:chemically induced; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000139:chemically induced; D003924:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 / Q000139:chemically induced; D004359:Drug Therapy, Combination; D005260:Female; D006402:Hematologic Diseases / Q000139:chemically induced; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000139:chemically induced; D011247:Pregnancy; D011248:Pregnancy Complications / Q000139:chemically induced; D011644:Puerperal Disorders / Q000139:chemically induced; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012559:Schizophrenia / Q000188:drug therapy*; D012565:Schizophrenic Psychology; D012737:Sex Factors; D013923:Thromboembolism / Q000139:chemically induced; D015430:Weight Gain / Q000187:drug effects
D014150:Antipsychotic Agents