Immunogenetic markers in chlorpromazine-induced tardive dyskinesia.

The presence and severity of tardive dyskinesia were determined in 66 patients with chronic psychiatric disorders treated with chlorpromazine. The patients were classified according to the presence of antinuclear antibodies, the lupus anticoagulant, and the HLA antigen Bw44. The severity of orofacial dyskinesia was estimated using the Rockland Research Institute Scale. Patients with autoantibodies and the Bw44 antigen had higher tardive dyskinesia scores than those with AAB without the Bw44 antigen and also patients without autoantibodies regardless of their HLA phenotype (P less than 0.01). These studies suggest that the presence of autoantibodies in association with the HLA Bw44 antigen is related to, and can be a predictor of, neurological complications of long-term chlorpromazine therapy.