Long-Acting Treatments for Schizophrenia

Schizophrenia has long presented treatment challenges for both patients who have the mental illness and the treatment providers who want to help them. Many medications prescribed for schizophrenia have traditionally not always been well-tolerated in patients, with sometimes significant side effects in some. Schizophrenia is a condition characterized by the person experiencing hallucinations and/or delusions, sometimes of a persecutory nature. It is usually first diagnosed in young adulthood — typically in a person’s 20s — and more often among men than women. Although usually severe in nature, it is also a relatively rare mental illness that appears to affect less than 0.5% of the population. Untreated schizophrenia often results in a poor quality of life, with many being unable to take care of the basic necessities of life such as shelter, food, and providing for oneself. A person with untreated schizophrenia is also more likely to be affected with a wide range of general health problems, too. Traditional Treatment for Schizophrenia Traditional treatment for schizophrenia has long relied on taking oral antipsychotic medications on a regular schedule (once, twice or three times daily). Antipsychotics taken this way have shown to be effective in a large percentage of patients who are prescribed them. However, the problem arises that when a patient has been stabilized on an antipsychotic drug, they often feel well enough to discontinue the medication, often on thei...
Source: Psych Central - Category: Psychiatry Authors: Tags: Antipsychotics Atypical Antipsychotics Disorders General Medications Schizophrenia Treatment Invega Sustenna lai long-acting injectables Medication Noncompliance Paliperidone Psychiatry Psychotic relapse Risperidone Schizophr Source Type: news