Drug related pain and tremor after chronic aripiprazole administration: A case report

Abstract

Aripiprazole is the second generation of antipsychotics with a high affinity to the serotonin receptor. It’s been known to stimulate dopamine release through feedback loop at the basal ganglia, resulting in almost no EPS (extrapyramidal Side effects). However, a recent study has described that the side effects, such as ‘extrapyramidal symptoms’, ‘parkinsonism’ and ‘tremor’ were significantly more common in children and adolescents who were treated with aripiprazole. In our case report, a female patient who had hyperalgesia and resting tremor in her right arm visited pain clinic of our hospital. She has taken chronic aripiprazole. Initially, a diagnosis of complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) was suspicious. However, drug-induced tremor was diagnosed based on the image tests and the clinical examination. Spontaneous pain, tremor and hyperalgesia of upper extremities were symptoms of CRPS, but some drugs like aripiprazole can cause pain and tremor.