Am J Psychiatry 1990; 147:1149-1155
Copyright © 1990 by American Psychiatric Association
Neuroleptic malignant syndrome in 12 of 9,792 Chinese inpatients exposed to neuroleptics: a prospective study
MZ Deng, GQ Chen and MR Phillips
Guangzhou City Psychiatric Hospital, Guangdong, People's Republic of China.
In a prospective study of an estimated 9,792 inpatients treated with
neuroleptic medication at a large Chinese psychiatric hospital, 12 patients
developed neuroleptic malignant syndrome. The estimated prevalence of
neuroleptic malignant syndrome in these psychiatric inpatients was
1.23/1,000 (95% confidence interval = 0.63/1,000 to 2.14/1,000). Unlike
other investigators, the authors found that young adulthood,
nonschizophrenic illness, oral high-potency neuroleptics, and concurrent
use of lithium were not important risk factors for neuroleptic malignant
syndrome. However, depot fluphenazine decanoate, particularly if used
without an antiparkinsonian agent, was a risk factor.
