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. 2022 Jul 11;8(4):e131.
doi: 10.1192/bjo.2022.537.

Clozapine treatment and risk of COVID-19

Emanuele F Osimo  1 , Jonathan Lewis  2 , Rudolf N Cardinal  3 , Golam M Khandaker  4
Affiliations

Clozapine treatment and risk of COVID-19

Emanuele F Osimo et al. BJPsych Open. .

Abstract

The antipsychotic clozapine is known to have immune-modulating effects. Clozapine treatment has been reported to be associated with increased risk of COVID-19 infection. However, it remains unclear whether this is because of increased testing of this patient group, who are closely monitored. We linked anonymised health records from mental health services in Cambridgeshire (UK), for patients taking antipsychotic medication, with data from the local COVID-19 testing hub. Patients receiving clozapine were more likely to be tested for COVID-19, but not to test positive. Increased testing in patients receiving clozapine suggests prudent judgement by clinicians, considering the overall health vulnerabilities of this group.

Keywords: Antipsychotics; COVID-19; clozapine; psychotic disorders; schizophrenia.

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Conflict of interest statement

R.N.C. consults for Campden Instruments and receives royalties from Cambridge Enterprise, Routledge and Cambridge University Press. The other authors have no conflict of interests or financial disclosures to declare.

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