about 7400 Clozapine scripts in England 2007 for a drug that kills 1 per week

see

http://www.ic.nhs.uk/webfiles/publications/PCA%20publication/PCA%202007%20complete%20V2.pdf

page 111 / 619


Clozaril_Tab 100mg 3 2.5 1.8 214.7 244.4 1 85.59 0.88 97.40
Clozaril_Tab 25mg 3 1.6 1.1 22.7 102.2 1 14.57 0.22 65.68
Denzapine_Tab 100mg 3 1.2 1.0 84.1 95.5 1 70.53 0.88 80.15
Denzapine_Tab 25mg 3 0.6 0.5 8.6 38.9 1 13.46 0.22 61.12
Zaponex_Tab 100mg 3 0.9 0.8 21.3 33.2 1 24.97 0.64 38.90
Zaponex_Tab 25mg 3 0.7 0.6 3.5 16.5 1 5.35 0.21 24.94
Total for chemical entity : Clozapine 7.4 6.0 354.9 47.91


Mind, the mental health charity, which analysed the figures, said that the number of deaths associated with the drug was chilling. The MHRA promised to look into the charitys concerns.
The warning comes as the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) is due to publish guidelines tomorrow on the treatment of schizophrenia, which affects about one in every 100 people in Britain. The watchdog will recommend that oral anti-psychotic medications should be offered to people with newly diagnosed schizophrenia, although patients should take clozapine only after trying at least two other drugs.
The drug, also known by the brand names Clozaril, Denzapine and Zaponex, was prescribed on 7,000 occasions last year many of which will have been repeat prescriptions to help to control delusions and hallucinations.