Thesis (Ph.D.) - Cairo University - Faculty of Medicine - Department of Pharmacology

Males are more affected than females (1.4:1) and it usually begins at a young age (15{u2013}35 years), lasts long time, causes permanent disability, and has a high mortality rates. (Häfner, 2019) The mortality rate of schizophrenia in patients with mental disorders is 2{u2013}3 times higher than in the general populations with 10{u2013}20 years shorter life expectancy. (Garcia-Rizo & Bitanihirwe, 2020) antipsychotic medications, either typical or atypical, are the mainstay of treatment in addition to case management and social rehabilitation. (D. Siskind, Siskind, & Kisely, 2017) Cardiovascular pathologies are a leading cause of death in patients with schizophrenia whom are reported to have a 3-4 fold increased risk of dying prematurely from cardiovascular disease. (O{u201F}Neill et al., 2020) The rise in cardiovascular mortality has been attributed in part to patients' poor lifestyle choices. The use of antipsychotic drugs, on the other hand, is a major risk factor. (Vohra, 2020) Antipsychotics have been shown to prolong the corrected QT interval and, in some cases, cause sudden cardiac death. (Barcella et al., 2021) Refractory schizophrenic patients are those who do not respond properly to antipsychotic treatment and are classified as 30%{u2013}60% of all schizophrenia patients

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