The warning has come from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA.) The main point of the FDA is warning is that compulsive or uncontrollable urges to gamble, binge-eat, shop, and have sex have been reported with the use of the antipsychotic drug.
The drug goes under the commercial names Abilify, Abilify Maintena, and Aristada (there are also generic varieties called aripiprazole.) Aripiprazole is prescribed for the treatment of particular mental disorders. These include schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, Tourette’s disorder, and irritability associated with autistic disorder. The drug is sometimes used in conjunction with antidepressants.
The primary function of the medication is to reduce hallucinations and help to overcome disorganized thinking. Furthermore, the drug product can stabilize mood, improve depression, and decrease the tics of Tourette’s disorder.
According to Pharmaceutical Processing, the uncontrollable urges disappear once a user ceases to take the drug or where there is a controlled reduction with the dose.
The FDA is concerned that most of these risks have not been declared and, for those that are stated, the implications are not entirely clear. With some of the products, the package insert does indicate a reported side effect is gambling. However, the federal agency is concerned that the full extent of this impulse control is downplayed. Moreover, other aspects of the compulsion — like sexual desire — are not mentioned.
The Agency points out that the instances of the compulsive behaviors are rare. However, the case count has been increasing among those prescribed the medication. For this reason, FDA is providing new warnings about all of the various compulsive behaviors to the drug labels. In addition, the patient Medication Guides are also being upgraded.
The drug also carries established side-effects. These include: weight gain, headache, agitation or anxiety, insomnia, and gastro-intestinal effects. There are also risks with patients who have high blood sugar levels (diabetes) or a family history of diabetes.
