Details

Autor(en) / Beteiligte

• Hermesh, Haggai
• Shiloh, Roni
• Epstein, Yoram
• Manaim, Hillel
• Weizman, Abraham
• Munitz, Hanan

Titel

Heat Intolerance in Patients With Chronic Schizophrenia Maintained With Antipsychotic Drugs

Ist Teil von

• The American journal of psychiatry, 2000-08, Vol.157 (8), p.1327-1329

Ort / Verlag

Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Publishing

Erscheinungsjahr

2000

Quelle

MEDLINE

Beschreibungen/Notizen

• OBJECTIVE: Schizophrenia may be associated with hyperthermic syndromes such as febrile catatonia, neuroleptic malignant syndrome, and heatstroke. The authors hypothesized that an exercise-heat tolerance test would disclose abnormal thermoregulation in schizophrenic patients. METHOD: Seven male schizophrenic outpatients in remission maintained on depot antipsychotic treatment and eight healthy comparison subjects completed a heat tolerance test that consisted of two 50-minute bouts of walking a motor-driven treadmill at 40×C (relative humidity=40%). RESULTS: A significantly higher rise in rectal and skin temperatures was observed in the patient group. No differences in heart rate, blood pressure, or perspiration were detected. CONCLUSIONS: Schizophrenic patients maintained on antipsychotic drugs exhibit impaired heat tolerance. Possible explanations are a reduced ability to convey heat from the body's core to the periphery with or without excessive heat production. The hyperthermic response to the heat tolerance test may reflect a dysfunction associated with schizophrenia, a neuroleptic-induced side effect, or both.