Long-Acting Oral vs Injectable Antipsychotic Drugs in Schizophrenics
- 1 July 1978
- journal article
- clinical trial
- Published by American Medical Association (AMA) in Archives of General Psychiatry
- Vol. 35 (7) , 889-892
- https://doi.org/10.1001/archpsyc.1978.01770310095007
Abstract
• Sixty patients meeting the criteria established for schizophrenia who attained a clinical plateau following hospital discharge were randomized to receive for one year either penfluridol, 20 to 160 mg orally once each week, or fluphenazine decanoate, 0.5 to 4 ml every two weeks. The relapse rate for both treatments was low and equal. The rate of recurrence of psychosis for patients receiving penfluridol was 7% and for those receiving fluphenazine decanoate 10%. A retrospective comparison of the penfluridol group was made to a similar group of patients assigned to placebo in an earlier study. Placebo-treated patients had a relapse rate of 68%. Penfluridol patients had statistically fewer psychotic relapses. Questions about the possible carcinogenicity of penfluridol in animals will have to be resolved before it can be widely used. This study demonstrates the feasibility of using an oral, longacting antipsychotic agent. It would be a useful psychopharmacologic addition in the treatment of outpatient schizophrenics.Keywords
This publication has 3 references indexed in Scilit:
- AkinesiaArchives of General Psychiatry, 1975
- Controlled Trial of Depot Fluphenazine in Out-patient SchizophrenicsThe British Journal of Psychiatry, 1974
- Trial of Maintenance Therapy in SchizophreniaBMJ, 1971