Atypical Antipsychotics and Hyperglycemic Emergencies: Multicentre, Retrospective Cohort Study of Administrative Data

The objective of this study is to determine whether the use of atypical antipsychotics is associated with an increased risk of hospitalization for hyperglycemic emergencies (hyperglycemia, diabetic ketoacidosis, and hyperosmolar hyperglycemic state).

A common-protocol approach will be used to conduct retrospective cohort studies using administrative health care data from eight jurisdictions (the Canadian provinces of British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, and Nova Scotia, as well as the United Kingdom (UK) General Practice Research Database [GPRD]). Briefly, the Canadian databases include population-level data on physician billing, diagnoses and procedures from hospital discharge abstracts, and dispensations for prescription drugs. The data in Nova Scotia, Ontario, and Alberta will be restricted to patients aged 65 years and older, as prescription data are not available for younger patients. The GPRD is a clinical database that is representative of the UK population and contains the records for patients seen at over 680 general practitioner practices in the UK.

In each jurisdiction, the investigators will assemble a study cohort that includes all patients newly prescribed an antipsychotic medication (WHO Anatomical Therapeutic Chemical (ATC) code N05A) from April 1, 1998 (or the earliest date of data availability at each site) to March 31, 2010 (or the last date of data availability at each site if earlier). The date of study cohort entry will be defined by the date of the prescription (for GPRD) or dispensation (for all other sites) of the newly-prescribed antipsychotic. Patients in the study cohort will be followed from the date of study cohort entry until an event (defined below), censoring due to death or departure from the database, 365 days after cohort entry, or the end of the study period (March 31, 2011), whichever occurs first.

The exposure categories will be separated by the type of antipsychotic medication prescribed upon cohort entry as: 1) olanzapine users; 2) other atypical antipsychotic users; 3) typical antipsychotic users; and 4) risperidone users. Exposure to olanzapine will be defined as a prescription for olanzapine on the date of cohort entry. Exposure to other atypical antipsychotics will be defined as a prescription for an atypical antipsychotic other than olanzapine on the date of cohort entry. Exposure to typical antipsychotics will be defined as a prescription for a typical antipsychotic on the date of cohort entry. Exposure to risperidone will be defined as a prescription for risperidone on the date of cohort entry. The investigators will use an analysis analogous to an intention-to-treat approach. The primary outcome will be defined as a first hospitalization for a hyperglycemic emergency within 365 days of the initiation of the cohort defining antipsychotic medication.

The reference group throughout all analyses will be risperidone users. The primary comparator will be olanzapine users; other atypical antipsychotic users and typical antipsychotic users will both serve as secondary comparators.