Algorithm-based pharmacotherapy for first-episode schizophrenia involuntarily hospitalized: A retrospective analysis of real-world practice
Abstract
Little is known about the clinical outcomes of severely ill patients with first-episode schizophrenia spectrum disorders (FES) who are considered to lack the capacity to consent to clinical trials. We investigated the feasibility of an algorithm-based pharmacotherapy (ABP) and clinical outcomes of patients with FES involuntarily hospitalized and treated with ABP. We conducted a retrospective chart review of 160 patients admitted involuntarily between October 2012 and October 2015. Our algorithm aimed to delay olanzapine, standardize medications and suggest initiation of clozapine after failure (non-response or intolerability) of third-line antipsychotic treatment. The duration of each adequate antipsychotic treatment at optimal dosage was 4 weeks or more. The physician adherence rate to ABP was 95%. Response and remission rates were 76.0% and 48.6% in the first adequate antipsychotic trial (Phase I, n = 146), 62.5% and 25.0% in the second adequate antipsychotic trial (Phase II, n = 32), and 16.7% and 0% in the third adequate antipsychotic trial (Phase III, n = 6). Response and remission rates in the clozapine trial (n = 9) increased to nearly the level of Phase I (66.7% and 44.4%). The treatment-resistance rate was 8.4% to 10.3...Continue Reading
References
Comparative effectiveness of second-generation antipsychotics and haloperidol in acute schizophrenia
Delayed initiation of clozapine may be related to poor response in treatment-resistant schizophrenia
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