Thursday, March 27, 2008

Clozapine Better Than "High-Dose" Olanzapine for the Treatment of Adolescents With Schizophrenia

The results of a 12-week, double-blind, randomised study published in the March issue of Biological Psychiatry suggest that clozapine is more effective than "high-dose" olanzapine for the treatment of children and adolescents with schizophrenia who do not respond to standard, first-line antipsychotic treatment.

There is a wealth of scientific literature available on the treatment of adults with schizophrenia. However, there is a paucity of data to guide the treatment of children and adolescents with schizophrenia.

"Although the US Food and Drug Administration has recently approved the use of aripiprazole and risperidone for adolescents with schizophrenia, few controlled data are available to help guide clinicians regarding the management of children and adolescents with schizophrenia who fail to respond to these standard 'first-line' antipsychotic treatments," according to Dr. Sanjiv Kumra, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota, one of the authors of the study.

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