Resolution of Auditory Hallucinations After Right Temporal Haemorrhagic Stroke in a Patient With Clozapine-Resistant Schizoaffective Disorder: a Case Report

East Asian Arch Psychiatry. 2023 Dec;33(4):126-130. doi: 10.12809/eaap2340.

Abstract

We present a young woman with clozapine-resistant schizoaffective disorder who was treated with maintenance electroconvulsive therapy and multiple antipsychotics but continued to have auditory hallucinations. She had a haemorrhagic stroke secondary to a ruptured arteriovenous malformation at the right superior temporal gyrus, which was excised during emergency craniotomy. Despite having neurological deficits after the stroke, she reported cessation of auditory hallucinations. Magnetic resonance imaging of the brain showed Wallerian degeneration over the right temporal region. Personalised neuromodulation intervention may be a more effective treatment option for clozapine-resistant schizophrenia.

Keywords: Clozapine; Hallucinations; Schizophrenia.

Publication types

  • Case Reports

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Antipsychotic Agents* / therapeutic use
  • Clozapine* / therapeutic use
  • Female
  • Hallucinations* / etiology
  • Hemorrhagic Stroke / complications
  • Humans
  • Magnetic Resonance Imaging
  • Psychotic Disorders* / complications
  • Psychotic Disorders* / drug therapy
  • Schizophrenia, Treatment-Resistant / complications
  • Schizophrenia, Treatment-Resistant / drug therapy
  • Temporal Lobe

Substances

  • Clozapine
  • Antipsychotic Agents