Short term effectiveness of haloperidol versus risperidone in first-episode schizophrenia:

摘要

Aim:The supposed superiority of second-generation antipsychotic medication over first-generation antipsychotic medication has been challenged recently by several studies. This naturalistic retrospective study aims to compare outcomes between patients admitted for the first time with first-episode schizophrenia-spectrum disorders who were started on either haloperidol or risperidone. Would choice of antipsychotic affect length of admission and three-month outcome?Methods:Seventy-seven patients from the Early Psychosis Intervention Programme at the Institute of Mental Health were included in this study. Length of stay was obtained from hospital electronic records. Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) and Global Assessment of Functioning (GAF) scores at three months were used to assess severity of psychopathology and level of functioning respectively. A secondary analysis was also done to measure time to discontinuation for any reason.Results:There was a significant reduction in PANSS total, positive...