Users of clozapine risk ‘slow-gut’ death

It was a Thursday night in autumn when Daniel Warburton ate dinner with his parents, Maureen and Alan Warburton, as he did every week.

Daniel, who lived with schizophrenia, complained he felt a bit sick, but put it down to extra exercise.

On the Saturday, it was Alan who found Daniel, 37, lying on the porch of his Christchurch flat, television still going in the background. ’’I found him outside looking up at the sky. He was dead.

‘‘We didn’t realise – Daniel didn’t realise – that he was on this train that was going to end for him.’’

A coroner’s report has determined Daniel’s death was caused by a condition called clozapineinduced gastrointestinal hypomotility (CIGH) – also known as slow-gut.

Data on antipsychotic drug clozapine found Daniel was one of 13 New Zealanders who have died from the gut anomaly, prompting both Alan and Wellington researchers to call on drug manufacturing companies to take urgent action.

The condition, also known as gastrointestinal hypomotility, can result in severe constipation, bowel obstruction, or death, said researchers from the University of Otago, Wellington and Capital & Coast DHB.

Clozapine is one of the main treatments for schizophrenia, and works better than any other medication in about one-third of people.

Researchers analysed all 160 reported cases of serious clozapine-induced ‘‘slow-gut’’ submitted to New Zealand and Australian agencies over a 22-year period .

At least 29 of these patients died, including 13 New Zealanders. Serious slow-gut reactions affected clozapine users of all ages in this study, from a 17-year-old youth to a 73-year-old man.

‘‘Despite a number of recent coroner’s cases looking at this side-effect spectrum, with recommendations for better information and monitoring, we are yet to see action,’’ co-author Professor Pete Ellis of the university’s Psychological Medicine Department said.

Alan Warburton said Daniel took clozapine for about 16 years.

‘‘The key thing for us is making people aware of the risks of this drug, and it needs to be ongoing.’’

Maori leader dies

Ngati Te Ata leader Dame Nganeko Minhinnick, 77, who dedicated her life to protecting the environment and her people, was laid to rest yesterday at her family’s cemetery, Te Iti o Tahuna Kaitoto, near Tahuna Marae in Waiuku. She died last Thursday. Minhinnick was one of the main forces behind the Manukau Claim brought forward to the Waitangi Tribunal in 1985. The claim set a benchmark for the protection of natural resources in the Manukau Harbour. In 1988, Minhinnick represented her tribe at the United Nations on Human Rights.

Jailed for baby fraud

A woman who tried to fraudulently bring a baby into New Zealand will spend more than two years behind bars for lying to immigration officials. Haiyan Luo, a Chinese citizen with New Zealand permanent residency, was sentenced at the Waitakere District Court yesterday to 26 months’ imprisonment for providing false or misleading information to an immigration officer. The 46-year-old gave multiple fake documents to Immigration NZ in 2012 while trying to prove the baby was her son. Officials in Hong Kong raised concerns about her paperwork, and a subsequent investigation revealed she had never given birth to the child.

Tayler in hospital

Commonwealth Games gold medalwinning athlete Dick Tayler is in hospital after suffering a suspected heart attack. It’s understood Tayler, 68, collapsed while travelling with friends by car following the British and Irish Lions rugby tour in the Rotorua area on Sunday. Friends were assisting Tayler on the roadside when two doctors stopped to help. He was then taken to Rotorua Hospital. Otago rugby commentator Paul Allison was with Tayler when he suffered the ‘‘medical incident’’. ‘‘Dick is in a stable condition,’’ said Allison. ‘‘The signs are very positive and he is progressing favourably.’’ Allison said that before the incident Tayler had hoped to be at the unveiling of Sir Colin Meads’ statue in Te Kuiti on Monday. Tayler and Meads are friends and often speak together at rugby club functions across the country. Tayler, who is based at Waikouaiti, captured the nation’s hearts when he was an upset winner of the 10,000m on the opening day of the Christchurch Commonwealth Games in 1974.

Mental health workers’ claim

Mental health workers were not covered by the recent pay deal given to other carers. Care and support workers in aged care, disability care and home support this year won a long-awaited pay rise thanks to an historic equal pay settlement. They will now be paid the same as workers in similar industries not filled by predominantly female workers. However, mental health support workers will get nothing, unions say. The PSA and E tu unions have now lodged an equal pay claim with the Employment Relations Authority on behalf of mental health workers.