Leukocytosis Associated with Clozapine Treatment: Comparison
Please note this is a comparison between Version 1 by Pasquale Paribello and Version 2 by Lindsay Dong.

Clozapine is the only antipsychotic approved for treatment-resistant schizophrenia. Despite its superior efficacy profile as compared with other antipsychotics, clozapine remains underutilized. Clozapine monitoring systems clearly describe the proposed management of clozapine-induced neutropenia; however, no specific mention is made of how to interpret neutrophilic leukocytosis, despite that being a relatively frequent finding. 

  • clozapine
  • atypical antipsychotics
  • neutrophilia
  • leukocytosis

1. Introduction

  1. Introduction

Schizophrenia (SCZ) is a severe psychiatric disorder affecting approximately 1% of the general population [1]. Although the past twenty years have seen the development of antipsychotics with innovative mechanisms of action, namely partial agonism at D2 and 5-HT1 receptors, there is a large proportion of patients affected by SCZ who present suboptimal response or treatment resistance. For this population of patients, clozapine remains the most effective therapeutic option. Indeed, currently, clozapine is the only approved drug for treatment-resistant SCZ [2]. In SCZ clozapine has also shown a superior profile of efficacy for the treatment of suicidality [3], co-morbid substance use disorder [4], hostility[5][6][7], psychosis in Parkinson disease[8], and treatment-refractory mania[9]. Despite its known impact on metabolism[10], several lines of evidence suggest a positive effect on overall survival as compared to no treatment or to other antipsychotics [11][12][13][14]. Despite the mounting evidence suggesting its value in the management of the most severe cases of SCZ, clozapine remains significantly underutilized[15]. One possible explanation is the perception from prescribing physicians as a drug that needs too extensive clinical monitoring and that presents an unfavorable safety profile. Thus, experts have tried to increase the knowledge and confidence in the management of common side effects as well as in the interpretation of possible blood markers derangements of clozapine [16]. Thirty years have passed since the reintroduction of clozapine in the market following the influential paper authored by Kane [17] with mandatory blood monitoring required in numerous countries. Arguably, this factor may have further reduced the likelihood of using clozapine in certain settings but helped to determine with a reasonable level of confidence the real incidence of severe hematological side effects, up to the point of questioning the usefulness of these protocols [18]. However, considering the complex history surrounding this drug, determining the clinical significance of either a leukopenia or a leukocytosis represents a particularly critical step. In most laboratories, the reference range for circulating leukocytes is included between 4500 and 11,000 units per mm3 (units/mm3). Under physiological conditions, neutrophils represent their vast majority, ranging from 1800 up to 7700 units/mm3 [19]. When considering the possible underlying causes for these anomalies, clinicians should always evaluate the absolute count of each leukocyte subpopulation: the total leukocyte counts by themselves can be misleading as an absolute leukocyte count falling within the normal range may instead be harboring an abnormal composition in one or more of its subpopulations. Clozapine monitoring systems clearly describe the proposed management of clozapine-induced neutropenia. However, no specific mention is made of how to interpret neutrophilic leukocytosis, despite it being a relatively frequent finding. Prescribers unfamiliar with this molecule may misjudge its clinical significance, potentially leading to untimely treatment interruption.

2. Leukocytosis Associated with Clozapine Treatment

  1. Leukocytosis Associated with Clozapine Treatment

Notwithstanding the significant efficacy of clozapine, in the years following its re-introduction in clinical use numerous side-effects have been described, some relatively minor and others potentially life-threatening. Its use is associated with an increased risk of weight gain, metabolic syndrome, sialorrhea, constipation, sedation, enuresis and seizures. Despite the great attention devoted to the possible development of agranulocytosis (or severe neutropenia as it is currently described, i.e., < 500 neutrophils per microliter), this is a rare event: it is estimated that the risk of observing a fatal agranulocytosis case during regular monitoring is 1 in 8000 and with a negligible risk after the first 12 months of treatment. This is a much lower risk as compared with the risk of fatal myocarditis or fatal pulmonary embolism associated with its use, estimated as 1 in 4500 and 1 in 1000, respectively [20]. Prescribers and service users alike need to be particularly attentive and proactive in monitoring for the emergence of these major side effects. However, despite these findings, clozapine remains one of the most efficacious pharmacological treatments, and the one associated with the lowest risk of overall-cause death and treatment discontinuation as compared with the absence of treatment and with the other available treatments [14][21]. This is a particularly striking finding, especially considering how a long-acting injectable version of this medication is not available, and how its use is limited to the most severe, treatment-resistant cases.

According to the available data, clozapine use is associated with benign and transient leukocytosis [22][23], the incidence of which ranges from 0.6% to 7.7% [24][25]. A more persistent form has been described mainly in case reports and especially with concomitant lithium use [26]. More recently, Fabrazzo et al. reported leukocytosis in 37.8% of a clozapine-treated cohort of patients, with incidence rates of 11.1% and 26.7% for the transient and persistent types, respectively [27]. Male gender [24][26][28][29][30][31], and lithium co-administration represent the most important risk factors for leukocytosis [32][33]. A retrospective one-year study described a 48.9% cumulative incidence for neutrophilia in a cohort comprising 101 patients treated with clozapine [26].

Smoking is another recognized cause of idiopathic leukocytosis regardless of pharmacotherapy[19], with some studies reporting an association between smoking cessation and leukocyte count reduction [34]. Smoking is also a clinically significant inducer of the CYP450 isoenzyme primarily responsible for clozapine metabolism (i.e., CYP1A2), with smokers needing nearly 1.5 times higher clozapine doses as compared with non-smokers [35]. This effect is independent of nicotine and results from the interactions of hydrocarbons typically found in smoke and cytosolic transcription factors, yielding increased CYP1A2 gene transcription [36][37][38][39]. Similarly, lithium-induced neutrophilia is a well-known hematological effect [19] resulting from a complex interaction with the bone marrow, promoting an increased peripheral neutrophilic count [40]. Although it does not appear to prevent severe neutropenia (i.e., <500 neutrophils/mm3), lithium augmentation is advised to prevent recurrent clozapine discontinuations in those individuals predisposed to neutropenia with neutrophil counts falling below the danger threshold indicated by the local clozapine monitoring guidelines [41][42].

As with clozapine-induced neutropenia, the precise mechanism underlying neutrophilia is currently unknown; however, a variety of different hypotheses have been proposed to explain the interaction between clozapine and the hematopoietic system’s cells. The most popular among them regards this as a dichotomic process, implying both direct and indirect effects with opposing results. According to this theory, clozapine directly induces increased production of reactive oxygen species resulting in a higher expression of pro-apoptotic genes, such as p53, Bax-α and Bik. Increased release of cytokines such as TNF-α, IL-2, IL-6, and G-CSF instead indirectly induces the expression of anti-apoptotic proteins, capable of promoting the differentiation and maturation of myelocytes.

The increase in the absolute neutrophil counts appears directly proportional to higher clozapine doses, suggesting a dose-dependent drug effect. Moreover, a downward dose titration tends to produce a normalization in the neutrophil counts, offering further support to this notion [28][43][44].

A further case series[29] described chronic clozapine-induced leukocytosis in seven individuals. None of them presented medical comorbidities (e.g., traumas, burns) that could contribute to the increased leukocyte count, although all of them were smokers. The highest leukocyte count reported was 19,800 units/mm3, with durations ranging from two to five years. No adverse consequence was reported, underscoring the benign nature of this phenomenon.

3. Conclusions

  1. Conclusions

Existing evidence indicates that leukocytosis associated with clozapine treatment is an asymptomatic and benign condition. We also reported on eight additional individuals presenting stable and persistent leukocytosis during follow-up ranging from one to ten years, further expanding the available evidence regarding this common laboratory finding during clozapine treatment. Considering these data, no change in clozapine treatment is therefore needed upon its detection. Showing that safe management of asymptomatic clozapine-induced leukocytosis is feasible, particularly when other possible etiologies are ruled out applying accurate clinical monitoring.

It remains unclear whether a particular diagnostic category may be associated with a higher risk of neutrophilia during clozapine treatment. For a variety of selected studies, there was no mention of the set of diagnostic criteria applied. When specified, a clear description of the relative frequency of each nosological condition was not consistently indicated. Similarly, smoking status and age of onset for the primary diagnosis were not consistently reported. 

References

  1. Michael J Owen; Akira Sawa; Preben Bo Mortensen; Schizophrenia. The Lancet 2016, 388, 86-97, 10.1016/s0140-6736(15)01121-6.
  2. Clozapine: product information. European Medical Agency. . European Medical Agency. Retrieved 2021-9-23
  3. Herbert Y. Meltzer; Clozapine Treatment for Suicidality in SchizophreniaInternational Suicide Prevention Trial (InterSePT). Archives of General Psychiatry 2003, 60, 82-91, 10.1001/archpsyc.60.1.82.
  4. Jibran Y. Khokhar; Angela M. Henricks; Emily D.K. Sullivan; Alan I. Green; Unique Effects of Clozapine: A Pharmacological Perspective. Studies in Surface Science and Catalysis 2018, 82, 137-162, 10.1016/bs.apha.2017.09.009.
  5. Leslie Citrome; Jan Volavka; Pál Czobor; Brian Sheitman; Jean-Pierre Lindenmayer; Joseph McEvoy; Thomas B. Cooper; Miranda Chakos; Jeffrey A. Lieberman; Effects of Clozapine, Olanzapine, Risperidone, and Haloperidol on Hostility Among Patients With Schizophrenia. Psychiatric Services 2001, 52, 1510-1514, 10.1176/appi.ps.52.11.1510.
  6. Jan Volavka; Pál Czobor; Brian Sheitman; Jean-Pierre Lindenmayer; Leslie Citrome; Joseph P. McEvoy; Thomas B. Cooper; Miranda Chakos; Jeffrey A. Lieberman; Clozapine, Olanzapine, Risperidone, and Haloperidol in the Treatment of Patients With Chronic Schizophrenia and Schizoaffective Disorder. American Journal of Psychiatry 2002, 159, 255-262, 10.1176/appi.ajp.159.2.255.
  7. Menahem I. Krakowski; Pál Czobor; Leslie Citrome; Nigel Bark; Thomas B. Cooper; Atypical Antipsychotic Agents in the Treatment of Violent Patients With Schizophrenia and Schizoaffective Disorder. Archives of General Psychiatry 2006, 63, 622-629, 10.1001/archpsyc.63.6.622.
  8. Leora L Borek; Joseph H Friedman; Treating psychosis in movement disorder patients: a review. Expert Opinion on Pharmacotherapy 2014, 15, 1553-1564, 10.1517/14656566.2014.918955.
  9. T Suppes; A Webb; B Paul; T Carmody; H Kraemer; A J Rush; Clinical outcome in a randomized 1-year trial of clozapine versus treatment as usual for patients with treatment-resistant illness and a history of mania.. American Journal of Psychiatry 1999, 156, NA, 10.1176/ajp.156.8.1164.
  10. Taylor, D.M. . The Maudsley Practice Guidelines for Physical Health Conditions in Psychiatry.; ‎Wiley-Blackwell: UK, 2020; pp. 752.
  11. Jari Tiihonen; Jouko Lönnqvist; Kristian Wahlbeck; Timo Klaukka; Leo Niskanen; Antti Tanskanen; Jari Haukka; 11-year follow-up of mortality in patients with schizophrenia: a population-based cohort study (FIN11 study). The Lancet 2009, 374, 620-627, 10.1016/s0140-6736(09)60742-x.
  12. Richard Hayes; Johnny Downs; Chin-Kuo Chang; Richard Jackson; Hitesh Shetty; Matthew Broadbent; Matthew Hotopf; Robert Stewart; The Effect of Clozapine on Premature Mortality: An Assessment of Clinical Monitoring and Other Potential Confounders. Schizophrenia Bulletin 2014, 41, 644-655, 10.1093/schbul/sbu120.
  13. Jentien M Vermeulen; Geeske Van Rooijen; Marita P J Van De Kerkhof; Arjen L Sutterland; Christoph U Correll; Lieuwe De Haan; Clozapine and Long-Term Mortality Risk in Patients With Schizophrenia: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Studies Lasting 1.1–12.5 Years. Schizophrenia Bulletin 2018, 45, 315-329, 10.1093/schbul/sby052.
  14. Heidi Taipale; Antti Tanskanen; Juha Mehtälä; Pia Vattulainen; Christoph U. Correll; Jari Tiihonen; 20‐year follow‐up study of physical morbidity and mortality in relationship to antipsychotic treatment in a nationwide cohort of 62,250 patients with schizophrenia (FIN20). World Psychiatry 2020, 19, 61-68, 10.1002/wps.20699.
  15. Jan P.A.M. Bogers; Peter F.J. Schulte; Daniel Van Dijk; Bert Bakker; Dan Cohen; Clozapine Underutilization in the Treatment of Schizophrenia. Journal of Clinical Psychopharmacology 2016, 36, 109-111, 10.1097/jcp.0000000000000478.
  16. Deanna L. Kelly; Oliver Freudenreich; MacKenzie A. Sayer; Raymond C. Love; Addressing Barriers to Clozapine Underutilization: A National Effort. Psychiatric Services 2018, 69, 224-227, 10.1176/appi.ps.201700162.
  17. John Kane; Gilbert Honigfeld; Jack Singer; Herbert Meltzer; Clozapine for the Treatment-Resistant Schizophrenic. Archives of General Psychiatry 1988, 45, 789-796, 10.1001/archpsyc.1988.01800330013001.
  18. N. Myles; H. Myles; S. Xia; M. Large; S. Kisely; C. Galletly; Robert Bird; D. Siskind; Meta-analysis examining the epidemiology of clozapine-associated neutropenia. Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica 2018, 138, 101-109, 10.1111/acps.12898.
  19. Lawrence Rice, M.J.. Hematology; Elsevier: Amsterdam, 2018; pp. 675-681.
  20. Taylor, D. M. Barnes, T. R. E. Young, A. H. . The Maudsley Prescribing Guidelines in psychiatry 14th edition; WILEY Blackwell: UK, 2021; pp. 880.
  21. Jari Tiihonen; Ellenor Mittendorfer-Rutz; Maila Majak; Juha Mehtälä; Fabian Hoti; Erik Jedenius; Dana Enkusson; Amy Leval; Jan Sermon; Antti Tanskanen; et al.Heidi Taipale Real-World Effectiveness of Antipsychotic Treatments in a Nationwide Cohort of 29 823 Patients With Schizophrenia. JAMA Psychiatry 2017, 74, 686-693, 10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2017.1322.
  22. Domenico De Berardis; Gabriella Rapini; Luigi Olivieri; Domenico Di Nicola; Carmine Tomasetti; Alessandro Valchera; Michele Fornaro; Fabio Di Fabio; Giampaolo Perna; Marco Di Nicola; et al.Gianluca SerafiniAlessandro CaranoMaurizio PompiliFederica VellanteLaura OrsoliniGiovanni MartinottiMassimo Di Giannantonio Safety of antipsychotics for the treatment of schizophrenia: a focus on the adverse effects of clozapine. Therapeutic Advances in Drug Safety 2018, 9, 237-256, 10.1177/2042098618756261.
  23. Stanton L. Gerson; Clozapine -- Deciphering the Risks. New England Journal of Medicine 1993, 329, 204-205, 10.1056/nejm199307153290312.
  24. G Lambertenghi Deliliers; Blood dyscrasias in clozapine-treated patients in Italy.. Haematologica 2000, 85, 233-7.
  25. Lieberman, J. A. Kane, J. M. Safferman, A. Z. Pollack, S. Howard, A. Szymanski, S. Masiar, S. J. Kronig, M. H. Cooper, T. Novacenko, H.; Predictors of response to clozapine. J Clin Psychiatry 1994, 55 suppl. B, 12-8.
  26. Trinidad, E. D. Potti, A. Mehdi, S. A.; Clozapine-induced blood dyscrasias. Haematologica 2000, 85, E02.
  27. Michele Fabrazzo; Vincenzo Prisco; Gaia Sampogna; Francesco Perris; Francesco Catapano; Alessio Maria Monteleone; Mario Maj; Clozapine versus other antipsychotics during the first 18 weeks of treatment: A retrospective study on risk factor increase of blood dyscrasias. Psychiatry Research 2017, 256, 275-282, 10.1016/j.psychres.2017.06.068.
  28. Sopko, M. Caley, C.; Chronic Leukocytosis Associated with Clozapine Treatment. . Clin Schizophr Relat Psychoses 2010, 4, 141-4.
  29. Subramoniam Madhusoodanan; Louis Cuni; Ronald Brenner; Martha Sajatovic; Nikhil Palekar; Dinara Amanbekova; Chronic Leukocytosis Associated With Clozapine. The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry 2007, 68, 484-488, 10.4088/jcp.v68n0320b.
  30. Anand Popli; Ronald Pies; Clozapine and Leukocytosis. Journal of Clinical Psychopharmacology 1995, 15, 286-287, 10.1097/00004714-199508000-00010.
  31. Seifritz, E. Hemmeter, U. Holsboer-Trachsler, E. Pöldinger, W.; Chronic Leukocytosis and Neutrophilia Caused by Rehabilitation Stress in a Clozapine-Treated Patient.. Pharmacopsychiatry 1993, 26, 99.
  32. Lapierre, G. Stewart, R.B.; Lithium carbonate and leukocytosis. American Journal of Hospital Pharmacy 1980, 37, 1525-8.
  33. Oyewumi, L. K. McKnight, M. Cernovsky, Z.Z.; Lithium dosage and leukocyte counts in psychiatric patients. J Psychiatry Neurosci 1999, 24, 215-221.
  34. Takakazu Higuchi; Fumio Omata; Kenji Tsuchihashi; Kazuhiko Higashioka; Ryosuke Koyamada; Sadamu Okada; Current cigarette smoking is a reversible cause of elevated white blood cell count: Cross-sectional and longitudinal studies. Preventive Medicine Reports 2016, 4, 417-422, 10.1016/j.pmedr.2016.08.009.
  35. Edoardo Spina; Jose De Leon; Clinical applications of CYP genotyping in psychiatry. Journal of Neural Transmission 2014, 122, 5-28, 10.1007/s00702-014-1300-5.
  36. Shu-Feng Zhou; Bo Wang; Li-Ping Yang; Jun-Ping Liu; Structure, function, regulation and polymorphism and the clinical significance of human cytochrome P450 1A2. Drug Metabolism Reviews 2009, 42, 268-354, 10.3109/03602530903286476.
  37. Shoshana Zevin; Neal L. Benowitz; Drug Interactions with Tobacco Smoking. Clinical Pharmacokinetics 1999, 36, 425-438, 10.2165/00003088-199936060-00004.
  38. Guido Bondolfi; Françoise Morel; Séverine Crettol; Fady Rachid; Pierre Baumann; Chin Eap; Increased Clozapine Plasma Concentrations and Side Effects Induced by Smoking Cessation in 2 CYP1A2 Genotyped Patients. Therapeutic Drug Monitoring 2005, 27, 539-543, 10.1097/01.ftd.0000164609.14808.93.
  39. Juan Antonio Carrillo; Angustias G. Herráiz; Sara Isabel Ramos; Guillermo Gervasini; Sonia Vizcaíno; Julio Benítez; Role of the Smoking-Induced Cytochrome P450 (CYP)1A2 and Polymorphic CYP2D6 in Steady-State Concentration of Olanzapine. Journal of Clinical Psychopharmacology 2003, 23, 119-127, 10.1097/00004714-200304000-00003.
  40. Daniele Focosi; Antonio Azzarà; Richard Eric Kast; Giovanni Carulli; Mario Petrini; Lithium and hematology: established and proposed uses. Journal of Leukocyte Biology 2008, 85, 20-28, 10.1189/jlb.0608388.
  41. Meyer, J.M Stahl, S.M.. The Clozapine handbook; Cambridge University Press: UK, 2019; pp. 330.
  42. A. Valevski; I. Modai; M. Lahav; Abraham Weizman; Clozapine—lithium combined treatment and agranulocytosis. International Clinical Psychopharmacology 1993, 8, 63-66, 10.1097/00004850-199300810-00011.
  43. Song, M.K. Bahk, W.M. Kwon, Y. J. Yoon, B.H. Lee, S.Y. Jon, D.I. Park, S.Y. Lim, E.; F3. A CASE OF LEUKOCYTOSIS ASSOCIATED WITH CLOZAPINE TREATMENT FOR THE MANAGEMENT OF CHRONIC SCHIZOPHRENIA. Schizophr Bull 2018, 44 Suppl. 1, S218-9.
  44. Fong Liu; Nahla Mahgoub; Stephen Ferrando; Leukocytosis Associated with Clozapine Treatment: A Case Report. Journal of Psychosomatic Research 2011, 52, 488-491, 10.1016/j.psym.2011.01.032.
More
Video Production Service