Psychotropic drugs and QTc prolongation

Assessment of the risk for arrhythmias requires knowledge of QTc interval prolonging drugs and baseline clinical risk factors for QTc prolongation. The combination of both determines whether ECG-monitoring is necessary at the start of a psychotropic drug. In this article, we summarize current literature regarding appropriate methods of calculating the QTc interval, risk factors for QTc prolongation and QTc-prolonging psychotropic drugs. The frequency of cardiac monitoring for patients receiving psychotropic drugs should be individually determined, based on the prescribed agent(s) and additional risk factors for TdP. In patients without baseline clinical risk factors for QTc prolongation or cardiac arrhythmias, starting a single psychotropic drug with a low risk profile, ECG-monitoring might not be necessary.