Haldol
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Haldol
A Helpful Medication or a Mistake?
Haldol is one of the brand names for haloperidol, a medication that was developed by a Belgian pharmaceutical firm in 1957. It was developed for the treatment of psychiatric disorders, principally schizophrenia but also more acute problems such as hallucinations and delirium. It was approved by the FDA for use in this county in 1988. The drug is given to the patient via muscular injection on a periodic basis; under these circumstances it has proven to be effective in reducing symptoms over a prolonged period.
The drug has also proved effective with severe agitation and various forms of manic behavior; when it is used at recommended dosage levels and given as a muscular injection it has been effective with a number of symptoms associated with psychiatric disruptions and maladies.
Unfortunately, Haldol is also one of those medications that has had widespread clinical use for other purposes and with methods not recommended by the manufacturer or approved by the FDA.
Over the years it has shown to be useful for, among other things, counteracting Tourette’s syndrome; treating the severe nausea associated with chemotherapy; and alcohol withdrawal. While relief of these symptoms is important, it is accomplished too often with higher dosage levels than are recommended. Moreover, many physicians have chosen to provide the drug via intravenous injection rather than by the FDA approved method: injection into a muscle. Intravenous use has been shown to have risks not encountered when the drug is properly applied.
The severe side effects of these "off-label" (meaning unapproved) uses of Haldol include fatal cardiovascular incidents. Two common side effects that have been documented are Long QT Syndrome (LQTS) and Torsades de Pointes (TdP). These terms both refer to heart related irregularities. LQTS can cause fainting and sudden death due to severe cardiac arrhythmia. TdP is a term for another physical malfunction associated with cardiac arrhythmia – which can lead to fibrillation and sudden death if there is not immediate medical intervention.
The documented instances of patient trauma and fatality have finally caused both manufacturer Johnson and Johnson and the FDA to issue warnings about the possible occurrence of specific side effects if Haldol is used improperly.
Haldol is an extremely useful drug that can be extremely harmful if physicians are casual about dosages, frequency of use and intravenous application. If you or a family member has been prescribed Haldol for any use you should question your physician about the recent FDA warning.
In addition, the widespread use of Haldol for “off-label” purposes and the severe results for some patients has highlighted the slow response of the drug manufacturer, the FDA and the medical community. This situation in turn has resulted in a number of lawsuits where patients or their surviving family members have sued for damages and won. Many more Haldol users are concerned about its continued use.
If you have experienced side effects from Haldol or have a family member who has suffered from the drug, you should know that Attorney One has been investigating Haldol misuse on behalf of other patients across the country. If you’d like further information on these efforts, use our Free Evaluation form and they’ll be in touch to see if you or your family member has been a victim of Haldol abuse.
Haldol In The News
To the Editor:Once again, I write to compliment Elizabeth Szlek on her Mind Matters column, specifically the one titled "Caring for our elders" that ran in the Oct. 30 Rome Observer.
