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Question:
Medication is prolonging my QTc. Must I stop it?
I take a drug called Serdolect. It's the best antipsychotic drug I have taken. I have tried many others, but I have stopped taking them because of side effects. The problem is that my QTc is prolonged when I'm on Serdolect. QTc is 470ms. Can I continue to take the medicine or do I have to stop? I have tried just about all other antipsychotics, and this is the only one I feel happy with.
submitted by Peter from Sweden on 10/10/2012
Answer:
by Texas Heart Institute cardiologist, Mehdi Razavi, MD 
A QTc of 470 is prolonged and as such I would recommend discussing with a cardiologist. As you note, antipsychotic medications may prolong this parameter. Prolonged QT intervals may then be associated with life threatening cardiac arrhythmias. Good luck. [QTc is a finding on EKG (electrocardiogram). It is the QT interval corrected for heart rate.]
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Updated October 2012
