Risperidone may cause Pituitary Tumors

As seen in this report, a recent study finds that the antipsychotic drug Risperidone may cause benign pituitary tumors. The findings can be a major blow as Risperidone is used extensively in the treatment of schizophrenia.

The study was conducted by researchers from the Duke University Medical Center in collaboration with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). They scrutinized the FDA database for reports of 40 million combinations of drugs and side effects submitted by doctors and patients. The researchers found that of the seven antipsychotic medications, risperidone (trade name Risperdal) was linked to 70 per cent of pituitary tumours. The study was carried out by Duke’s psychiatrist Dr P Murali Doraiswamy, MD, FDA's Ana Szarfman, MD and their colleagues. The findings were published in the June 2 issue of Pharmacotherapy.

It's another case of those pesky side effects coming home to roost ....