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 .
Double-blind comparison of olanzapine versus clozapine in schizophrenic patients clinically eligible for treatment with clozapine
BACKGROUND The treatment of schizophrenic patients who fail to respond to adequate trials of neuroleptic drugs is a major challenge . Clozapine has been one treatment option ; however , it is not universally effective and is limited in its use by safety concerns . With the introduction of newer agents , their performance relative to clozapine is of great clinical interest . METHODS The primary objective of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of olanzapine versus clozapine among treatment resistant DSM-IV schizophrenic patients . The study was primarily design ed to demonstrate the " noninferiority " of olanzapine compared to clozapine after 18 weeks of double-blind treatment . Conclusions were based on the one-sided lower 95 % confidence limit about the treatment effect observed from the primary efficacy variable ( Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale [ PANSS ] Total ) . RESULTS Mean changes from baseline to end point in PANSS Total score , using a last observation carried forward technique , showed that both agents were comparably effective in neuroleptic resistant patients , i.e. , demonstrated the " noninferiority " of olanzapine when compared to clozapine . Overall , significantly fewer olanzapine-treated patients ( 4 % ) discontinued for an adverse event than their clozapine-treated ( 14 % ) counterparts ( p = .022 ) . Among spontaneously reported adverse events , increased salivation , constipation , dizziness , and nausea were reported significantly more often among clozapine-treated patients , whereas only dry mouth was reported more often among olanzapine-treated patients . CONCLUSIONS Olanzapine was demonstrated to be noninferior to clozapine and better tolerated among resistant schizophrenic patients clinical ly eligible for treatment with clozapine
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 .