Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-2plfb Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-22T16:39:37.186Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Combined therapy with low-potency neuroleptic levomepromazine as an adjunct to haloperidol for agitated patients with acute exacerbation of schizophrenia

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  16 April 2020

Masato Higashima ,
Tsutomu Takeda ,
Tatsuya Nagasawa ,
Naohisa Hirao ,
Takashi Oka ,
Mitsuhiko Nakamura ,
Maki Kitamura  and
Yoshifumi Koshino
Masato Higashima*
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry and Neurobiology, Graduate School of Medical Science, Kanazawa University, 13-1 Takara-machi, Kanazawa920-8641, Japan
Tsutomu Takeda
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry and Neurobiology, Graduate School of Medical Science, Kanazawa University, 13-1 Takara-machi, Kanazawa920-8641, Japan
Tatsuya Nagasawa
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry and Neurobiology, Graduate School of Medical Science, Kanazawa University, 13-1 Takara-machi, Kanazawa920-8641, Japan
Naohisa Hirao
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry and Neurobiology, Graduate School of Medical Science, Kanazawa University, 13-1 Takara-machi, Kanazawa920-8641, Japan
Takashi Oka
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry and Neurobiology, Graduate School of Medical Science, Kanazawa University, 13-1 Takara-machi, Kanazawa920-8641, Japan
Mitsuhiko Nakamura
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry and Neurobiology, Graduate School of Medical Science, Kanazawa University, 13-1 Takara-machi, Kanazawa920-8641, Japan
Maki Kitamura
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry and Neurobiology, Graduate School of Medical Science, Kanazawa University, 13-1 Takara-machi, Kanazawa920-8641, Japan
Yoshifumi Koshino
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry and Neurobiology, Graduate School of Medical Science, Kanazawa University, 13-1 Takara-machi, Kanazawa920-8641, Japan
*
*Corresponding author. Email address: [email protected] (M. Higashima).
Get access

Extract

As a practical strategy for reducing agitation in schizophrenia, low-potency neuroleptics have been commonly used as an adjunct in combination with high-potency neuroleptics that seem superior in reducing positive symptoms. There is no evidence, however, that giving more than one antipsychotics at a time enhances therapeutic effects. Antipsychotic polypharmacy has been rather considered an unproven and potentially harmful practice [4].

The low-potency neuroleptic levomepromazine has been in common use for agitated patients with schizophrenia in Europe and Japan [2,3], because of its markedly sedative property. In order to clarify whether levomepromazine as an adjunct to high-potency neuroleptics are beneficial or harmful, therefore, we compared the efficacy of the combined therapy with levomepromazine and high-potency neuroleptic haloperidol with the monotherapy with haloperidol for patients with acute exacerbation of schizophrenia.

Keywords

SchizophreniaAntipsychotic drugLevomepromazineAgitationPolypharmacy
Type
Short communication
Information
European Psychiatry , Volume 19 , Issue 6 , September 2004 , pp. 380 - 381
Copyright
Copyright © 2004 European Psychiatric Association

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Hayashi, OMiyoshi, SHigashimura, TMiyoshi, CNakata, SOhya, F, et al. Blood concentration and clinical effects of haloperidol therapy in combination with levomepromazine. Jpn J Neuropsychop-harmacol 1983;5:41–7.Google Scholar
Ito, CKubota, YSato, M. A prospective survey on drug choice for prescriptions for admitted patients with schizophrenia. Psychiatry Clin Neurosci 1999;53(Suppl):35–40.Google ScholarPubMed
Lal, SNair, NPVCecyre, DQuirion, R. Levomepromazine receptor binding profile in human brain—implications for treatment-resistant schizophrenia. Acta Psychiatr Scand 1993;87:380–3.Google ScholarPubMed
Miller, ALCraig, CS. Combination antipsychotics: pros, cons, and questions. Schizophr Bull 2002;28:105–9.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Overall, JEGorham, DR. The brief psychiatric rating scale. Psychol Rep 1962;10:799–812.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Peroutka, SJU’Prichard, DCGreenberg, DASnyder, SH. Neuroleptic drug interactions with norepinephrine alpha receptor binding sites in rat brain. Neuropharmacology 1977;16:549–56.Google ScholarPubMed
Submit a response

Comments

No Comments have been published for this article.