Plasma levels of cytokines and soluble cytokine receptors during treatment with haloperidol.

Abstract

Clozapine increases the levels of cytokines and soluble cytokine receptors. The authors investigated whether haloperidol has similar effects. Rectal temperature, white blood cell counts, and plasma levels of cytokines and soluble cytokine receptors were assessed before and during 6 weeks of haloperidol treatment in 10 psychiatric patients. Haloperidol at mean doses of 7.0 mg/day (SD = 3.4), 6.9 mg/day (SD = 3.4), and 5.0 mg/day (SD = 3.1) at the end of the 1st, 2nd, and 6th weeks of treatment, respectively, did not affect rectal temperature, white blood cell counts, or plasma level of interleukin-1 receptor antagonist, interleukin-6, tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), soluble TNF receptor p55 or p75, or soluble interleukin-2 receptor. Haloperidol is unlikely to confound the results of studies investigating disease-related alterations in the levels of a broad range of cytokines and soluble cytokine receptors in schizophrenia.