At the time of this review , seven AAPs were available in Canada : aripiprazole clozapine olanzapine paliperidone quetiapine risperidone ziprasidone
Schizophrenia is a mental illness that requires lifelong treatment and is associated with symptoms that include hallucinations , delusions , cognitive impairment , disorganized thoughts , social withdrawal , and low motivation .
Antipsychotic medications are effective at relieving the symptoms of schizophrenia , and they form the foundation of treatment .
A multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, 16-week study of adjunctive aripiprazole for schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder inadequately treated with quetiapine or risperidone monotherapy.
OBJECTIVE Combining antipsychotics is common practice in the treatment of schizophrenia . This study investigated aripiprazole adjunctive to risperidone or quetiapine for treating schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder . METHOD In this multicenter , double-blind , 16-week , placebo-controlled study conducted at 43 American sites from July 2006 to October 2007 , patients with chronic , stable schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder diagnosed with DSM-IV-TR were r and omly assigned to receive aripiprazole ( 2 - 15 mg/d ) or placebo in addition to a stable regimen of quetiapine ( 400 - 800 mg/d ) or risperidone ( 4 - 8 mg/d ) . The primary outcome measure was the mean change from baseline to endpoint ( week 16 , last observation carried forward ) in the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale ( PANSS ) total score . RESULTS 323 subjects being treated with either risperidone ( n = 177 ) or quetiapine ( n = 146 ) were r and omly assigned to receive adjunctive aripiprazole ( n = 168 ) or placebo ( n = 155 ) . Baseline characteristics were similar ( mean PANSS total score : aripiprazole , 74.5 ; placebo , 75.9 ) except for history of suicide attempts ( aripiprazole , 27 % ; placebo , 40 % ) . Nearly 70 % of subjects in each arm completed the trial . Adjunctive aripiprazole and placebo groups were similar in the mean change from baseline to endpoint in the PANSS total score ( aripiprazole , -8.8 ; placebo , -8.9 ; P = .942 ) . The incidence of treatment-emergent adverse events was similar between groups . Mean changes in Simpson-Angus Scale , Abnormal Involuntary Movement Scale , and Barnes Akathisia Rating Scale scores were not statistically significantly different . Adjunctive aripiprazole was associated with statistically significantly greater decreases in mean serum prolactin levels from baseline than was adjunctive placebo ( -12.6 ng/mL for aripiprazole vs -2.2 ng/mL for placebo ; P < .001 ) , an effect that was seen in the risperidone subgroup ( -18.7 ng/mL vs -1.9 ng/mL ; P < .001 ) but not in the quetiapine subgroup ( -3.01 ng/mL vs + 0.15 ng/mL ; P = .104 ) . CONCLUSIONS The addition of aripiprazole to risperidone or quetiapine was not associated with improvement in psychiatric symptoms but was generally safe and well tolerated . Further research is warranted to explore whether antipsychotic combination therapy offers benefits to particular patient population s-for example , in cases of hyperprolactinemia . TRIAL REGISTRATION clinical trials.gov Identifier : NCT00325689
At the time of this review , seven AAPs were available in Canada : aripiprazole clozapine olanzapine paliperidone quetiapine risperidone ziprasidone
Schizophrenia is a mental illness that requires lifelong treatment and is associated with symptoms that include hallucinations , delusions , cognitive impairment , disorganized thoughts , social withdrawal , and low motivation .
Antipsychotic medications are effective at relieving the symptoms of schizophrenia , and they form the foundation of treatment .