Why are vets treated for PTSD dying in their sleep, I wondered in response to an outstanding diary. Vets being treated with a combination of Seroquel, Klonopin and Paxil are dying unexpectedly.
Stan White, father of soldier Andrew White, has become an advocate for families of returning veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder. During his son's struggle with the disorder and since his death, White has tracked similar cases. He knows of about eight in the tri-state area of Kentucky, Ohio and West Virginia.
I may have found the answer. (I am a PhD geochemist, not a drug expert, so take this as a possibility to look into.)
Seroquel is an antipsychotic drug that causes prolongation of the QT interval, a measure of the rate of electrical conduction in the heart. Excessively prolonged QT intervals can result in death by heart arrhythmia.
Seroquel is eliminated by in the liver by cytochrome 450 3A. Klonopin is eliminated by the same process. Paxil is eliminated by cytochrome 450 IID6.
The interaction of Seroquil and Klonopin has not been studied according to the drug company information, but if they are eliminated by the same process the Klonopin could be interfering with the elimination of Seroquel causing an increase in the effective dose.
It is possible that excessively blood high levels of Seroquel are causing fatal cardiac arrhythmias in some patients.
This possibility warrants investigation. The combination of Seroquel and Klonopin could be dangerous.