Mental Health Antipsychotics, Prolactin and Testosterone

[polymath]

I had some psychotic episodes 8-10 years ago and I was on risperidone (4mg/day) for about 10 years to prevent that from happening again... Last November I went to a private psychiatrist because I was having a lot of anxiety and OCD symptoms and my citalopram medication alone wasn't helping enough. The new psychiatrist changed the citalopram to sertraline 150mg/day because sometimes even if one SSRI doesn't work another one can. Then I told her that I was suspecting the risperidone was causing me hyperprolactinemia because I have developed an erectile dysfunction in the past few years. I had a blood test taken two weeks ago, and the results came back last friday. My prolactin level was high, and my testosterone value was only 8 when it should be 10-38 in healthy men. The risperidone was changed to quetiapine 600mg/day a couple of days ago, and I've been sedated as hell and sleeping all the time but tolerance to the sedative effect should develop in a week. Quetiapine does not usually affect prolactin and testosterone levels like risperidone.

My low testosterone level had already weakened my bones and I even got a small fracture in my hip when I slipped on ice and fell some time ago. Usually young people don't get that kind of fractures from simple falling. I now need to take a vitamin D and calcium supplement to speed up the regeneration of my bones.

I will have another blood test taken in two months to find out whether my hormone levels have improved, and if they haven't I need to be put on testosterone replacement therapy.

I'm posting this thread as a warning to everyone who uses risperidone or other antipsychotics. These drugs can severely affect your hormone levels, which is very bad for you! If you're on antipsychotics and you have erectile problems / low libido, get your testosterone and prolactin levels measured. If the public health doctor refuses to do that, go to a private psychiatrist!

 

[Lexx23]

That or Cialis.

 

[polymath]

^ Erectile dysfunction is not the only adverse effect of low testosterone. Low T also causes depression, osteoporosis and heart disease, which can be life-threatening at worst. Cialis/Viagra does nothing to help with that.

 

[bdomihizayka]

Hey dude..... Where did anyone get the idea that Seroquel isn't going to inhibit your erections and/or hormones? Allllllll antipsychotics reduce dopamine. Dopamine inhibits your pituitary from secreting Prolactin- so the drug tends to jack up your Prolactin. High prolactin levels have been found to inhibit "gonadal function" in both men and women.

 

[polymath]

^ Quetiapine is one of the so-called "prolactin-sparing" antipsychotics that have little effect on the D2 receptors of tuberoinfundibular dopamine pathway which regulates the secretion of prolactin. Aripiprazol (abilify) would be even better because it actually suppresses prolactin release. Risperidone, on the other hand, is more prone to cause hyperprolactinemia than any other antipsychotic.