Project Summary

Tianlai Tang, M.D., Ph.D. (Young Investigator 2005) of Vanderbilt University, proposes studying the cardiovascular risk associated with antipsychotic medication therapy. Recent evidence suggests that treatment with newer atypical antipsychotics (e.g. olanzapine and clozapine) is linked to the development of diabetes, and an increase in triglycerides and the triglycerides (TG)/ high-density lipoprotein (HDL) ratio, one of the strongest risk factors for ischemic heart disease (IHD). It remains unknown, though, how triglyceride/HDL ratio changes relate to ischemic EKG changes in patients treated with antipsychotic drugs, and whether switching medications and education can reverse the changes in those most severely affected. The primary goal of this study is to examine the triglyceride/HDL ratio and the ischemic EKG changes in patients with schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder or bipolar disorder compared to normal controls. The secondary goal is to identify subjects with the highest risk of IHD, as defined by TG/HDL ratios (»3.5) and ischemic EKG changes with and without clinical ischemia, e.g. angina, and to see if these risk factors can be reduced or reversed by changing antipsychotic medication, dietary counseling, and enrollment into exercise groups, etc. Results could provide a measure of the risk of IHD from treatment with each of the commonly used atypical antipsychotic drugs.

Program Area: MULTIPLE FOCUS AREAS\Bipolar Disorder/Schizoaffective/Schizophrenia

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