This book is the result of many years of observations at the dissecting table and at the microscope during the post-mortem examination of deceased mentally ill patients who received long-term antipsychotic therapy during their lifetime. Due to the fact that the applied psychotropic treatment was, as a rule, of the nature of polyprogmasia, it was not possible to identify a specific side effect of each of the numerous antipsychotic drugs used, both of the first and second generations. Therefore, a certain total negative side effect has been studied in relation to organs and tissues belonging to many systems of the body. This book analyzes data on heart damage – one of the most vulnerable target organs to the damaging effects of antipsychotics, which is due to the powerful cardiotoxic properties of almost all of these medications. The book not only presents the scientific side of the issue with a certain emphasis, taking into account the author’s medical specialty, on morphology at the macro – and microscopic levels of research, but also pays great attention to the clinical aspects of the cardiac pathology being analyzed, which undoubtedly has serious practical significance. The extensive literature cited, covering a wide range of problems related to the topic of the book in one way or another, gives it even more weight and interest.
The author hopes that this book will to some extent expand the horizons of medical workers and help staff who are faced with the use of antipsychotic drugs in their work to suspect heart damage as early as possible and begin appropriate therapeutic and preventive measures.
