Publications by authors named "Lisette Connell"

Article Synopsis
  • Constipation is a common side effect of the antipsychotic drug clozapine (CLZ), affecting 25-60% of users.
  • A diagnostic test using silver O-ring markers showed that patients on CLZ, either alone or with other antipsychotics, had significantly higher levels of gastrointestinal hypomotility compared to those on other antipsychotics.
  • The study found that even some patients who did not meet clinical criteria for constipation still exhibited objective signs of hypomotility, confirming the impact of CLZ on gut function.
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Background: The antipsychotic drug (APD) clozapine (CLZ) is under-prescribed because of concerns about its safety. We evaluated in separate protocols the frequency of cardiomyopathy and hyponatraemia, which are adverse drug effects, where few comparative studies are available.

Methods: Cross-sectional studies in subjects treated for at least 3 consecutive months with the same drug were conducted.

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Background: Few studies on the association between atypical antipsychotic drug (AAP) administration and metabolic dysfunction have concurrently evaluated the general population (GP), other psychotropic drug treatments and drug-free psychiatric patients.

Methods: We assessed the frequency of the metabolic syndrome (MS) according to the National Cholesterol Education Program criteria (NCEP) and its constituting variables in a GP sample (n=271) and in patients receiving, for at least three consecutive months, antiepileptic drugs (n=93), olanzapine (n=162), clozapine (n=105), typical antipsychotics (n=117), other AAP (n=58), other psychotropic drugs (n=185), and drug-free individuals (n=636). Subjects were clinically classified as schizophrenia, bipolar or other axis I disorders (DSM-IV-RT), and as first-degree relatives of each diagnostic group.

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Article Synopsis
  • The study investigated how leptin's role influences metabolic issues in schizophrenia patients treated with clozapine, focusing on genetic variations in leptin-related genes.
  • The research comprised two phases: first, analyzing the metabolic profiles and genetic SNPs of 56 patients; second, assigning 52 of these patients to receive either metformin or placebo for 14 weeks.
  • Results indicated that while certain triglyceride levels were lowest in one genetic group, metformin treatment led to increased glucose levels in one genotype and a decrease in metabolic indicators in another, revealing complex responses based on genetic variations.
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Background: Clozapine is the most effective agent in treatment-resistant schizophrenia. However, it is frequently associated with excessive body weight (BW) gain, type 2 diabetes mellitus and hyperlipidemia. The antidiabetic metformin (MET) has proved effective to assist in BW control during olanzapine administration.

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Background: Excessive body weight gain (BWG) is a clinically relevant side effect of olanzapine administration. The primary objective of this study was to assess whether metformin prevents or reverses BWG in patients with schizophrenia or bipolar disorder under olanzapine administration. Secondarily we evaluated diverse metabolic variables.

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