Abstract:
Data of 3947 patients, hopsitalized between 1980 and 1992 in the University Psychiatric Clinic of Tübingen and treatet with haloperidol or clozapine, were the basis of this retrospective study. During monotherapy oder combination therapy with haloperidol or clozapine 717 patients with liver enzyme increases (in particular the increase of SGPT >22 U/l) had been detected. Monotherapy was defined as the absence of simultaneously administered medication with known effects on liver values.
Treatment with haloperidol and clozapine point out different effects on incidence, absolute increase of hepatic enzyme levels and latency period prior to hepatic enzyme rise.
The short latency until development of liver enzyme rise, the higher incidence of pathological enzyme levels under combination therapy and the frequent improvement following dose reduction of haloperidol argues for a direct toxic effect on the liver under haloperidol treatment.
The estimations of this survey support an idiosyncratic form of hepatic injury in the case of clozapine. The latency period until enzyme rise was sigificant longer than under haloperidol treatment. The higher incidence of enzyme elevations under clozapine- monotherapy in comparison with clozapine – combination therapy and the normalization after the rise of enzyme values, despite the clozapine dosage was even increased, underline the hypothesis of the idiosyncratic drug effect on the liver.
Liver enzyme elevations were more frequently observed during treatment with clozapine than in case of haloperidol, whereas the courses of liver enzyme elevations in both cases were asymptomatic and a temporary phenomenon. An age- and dosis- dependence of liver enzyme disturbance could not be found in both treatment groups. Men more frequently show raised enzyme levels than women. There is no standardized drug administration after liver enzyme elevation.