Psychotic Agitation in a Patient with COVID-19: Pathogenesis or Iatrogenesis?

The pathophysiological underpinnings of central nervous system (CNS) involvement in SARS-CoV-2 infection, as well as the profile of adverse neuropsychiatric effects of pharmacological agents employed in the management of COVID-19, are yet to be elucidated. Here, we report a 43-year-old female patien...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Psychiatry and clinical psychopharmacology 2021-06, Vol.31 (2), p.238-240
Main Authors: Yesilkaya, Umit Haluk, Balcioglu, Yasin Hasan, Sen, Meltem
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Case Report
Citations: Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:The pathophysiological underpinnings of central nervous system (CNS) involvement in SARS-CoV-2 infection, as well as the profile of adverse neuropsychiatric effects of pharmacological agents employed in the management of COVID-19, are yet to be elucidated. Here, we report a 43-year-old female patient who suffered from COVID-19 and who developed new-onset psychotic agitated behavior which may be related to either the COVID-19 infection itself or to the drugs that were used in the treatment. On her third day of treatment with oseltamivir, hydroxychloroquine, and azithromycin, the patient, who had no previous background of neurological or psychiatric diagnosis, presented with a new-onset psychomotor agitation with auditory hallucinations and insomnia. Her psychiatric symptoms have improved with oral olanzapine 5 mg/d. This report underscores the importance of neuropsychiatric monitoring in patients with COVID-19. Clinicians should be aware of the limited knowledge on the neuropsychiatric safety profile of the medication used for COVID-19 treatment, while they have focused on the neuropsychiatric outcomes of COVID-19 itself.
ISSN:2475-0581
2475-0581
DOI:10.5152/pcp.2021.21101