Med/Psych Update

How to assess and manage high cholesterol in patients with mental illness

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References

Bottom Line

High cholesterol is a leading risk factor for cardiovascular disease, including heart attack and stroke, which contribute to increased morbidity in psychiatric patients. Consider using online tools to evaluate your patients’ 10-year risk of cardiovascular events. Reducing total cholesterol, often with the help of statin medications, significantly reduces the risk of subsequent events in adults at extremely high risk of cardiovascular disease.

Related Resources
• American College of Cardiology. Dyslipidemia. www.acc.org/clinical-topics/dyslipidemia.
• Koch J, Thomas CJ. Using lipid guidelines to manage metabolic syndrome for patients taking an antipsychotic. Current Psychiatry. 2016;15(7):59,62-66.

Drug Brand Names
Aripiprazole • Abilify
Atorvastatin • Lipitor
Ezetimibe • Zetia
Fluvastatin • Lescol
Haloperidol • Haldol
Lisinopril • Prinivil, Zestril
Lovastatin • Mevacor, Altoprev
Olanzapine • Zyprexa
Pravastatin • Pravachol
Pitavastatin • Livalo
Pravastatin • Pravachol
Risperidone • Risperdal
Rosuvastatin • Crestor
Simvastatin • Zocor
Tramadol • Ultram
Valproic acid • Depakote, Depakene
Ziprasidone • Geodon

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