Alterations of glucose metabolism under treatment with atypical antipsychotics

In order to study alterations of glucose metabolism we conducted a prospective investigation on patients with the diagnosis of schizophrenic disorder (ICD 10) who received either amisulpride or clozapine We included 22 patients. Eleven of them received clozapine; their mean age was 37.4 (±8), four of them were male and seven female. Eleven patients received amisulpride. Their mean age was 37.9 years (SD:±9). Seven of them were male and four female. Observation time was between 8 and 24 weeks. Our results show no elevation of fasting glucose and of glucose levels after OGTT in the amisulpride group as well as in the clozapine group. Patients treated with clozapine showed a significant increase of insuline resistance indices (HOMA-IR). This was not found in patients treated with amisulpride. Furthermore we found a significant decrease of BMI (body mass index) in patients treated with amisulpride, whereas patients treated with clozapine showed a significant increase of BMI. Our results indicate that there might be a lower risk for the development of alterations in glucose metabolism under treatment with amisulpride as compared to clozapine.