BMJ  2006;333 (29 July), doi:10.1136/bmj.333.7561.0-a

How effective are antipsychotic treatments in the community?

The effectiveness of first and second generation antipsychotics in treating schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorders varies greatly in a real world setting. Tiihonen and colleagues (p 224) followed 2230 consecutive adults who were hospitalised for the first time because of schizophrenia for an average of 3.6 years. Patients treated with perphenazine depot, clozapine, or olanzapine had a lower risk of rehospitalisation or all cause discontinuation of their initial treatment than those treated with haloperidol. Excess mortality was seen in patients not using antipsychotic drugs.

Credit: BSIP, PIKO/SPL

CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    What's this?

Relevant Article

Effectiveness of antipsychotic treatments in a nationwide cohort of patients in community care after first hospitalisation due to schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder: observational follow-up study

Jari Tiihonen, Kristian Walhbeck, Jouko Lönnqvist, Timo Klaukka, John P A Ioannidis, Jan Volavka, and Jari Haukka
BMJ 2006 333: 224. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]