For its management , experts agreed in considering  verbal de-escalation  and  environmental modification techniques  as first choice , considering physical restraint as a last resort strategy .
BACKGROUND Psychomotor agitation is associated with different psychiatric conditions and represents an important issue in psychiatry .
Current recommendations on agitation in psychiatry are not univocal .
Actually , an improper assessment and management may result in unnecessary coercive or sedative treatments .
A thorough and balanced review plus an expert consensus can guide assessment and treatment decisions .
Droperidol vs. haloperidol in the initial management of acutely agitated patients.
In a double-blind clinical study , 27 acutely agitated patients were treated with an intramuscular injection of 5 mg of droperidol or 5 mg of haloperidol from identical appearing vials . At 30 minutes following treatment , 81 % of the patients treated with haloperidol but only 36 % treated with droperidol required a second injection ( p less than .05 ) . Thus , droperidol , a safe butyrophenone neuroleptic , appears to be a drug of choice for rapid and reliable control of acute agitation
For its management , experts agreed in considering  verbal de-escalation  and  environmental modification techniques  as first choice , considering physical restraint as a last resort strategy .
BACKGROUND Psychomotor agitation is associated with different psychiatric conditions and represents an important issue in psychiatry .
Current recommendations on agitation in psychiatry are not univocal .
Actually , an improper assessment and management may result in unnecessary coercive or sedative treatments .
A thorough and balanced review plus an expert consensus can guide assessment and treatment decisions .