Psychopharmacological treatment of schizophrenia: what do we have, and what could we get?

Abstract

Antipsychotic drugs for the treatment of schizophrenia arrived in the clinic in the fifties of the previous century and have since been the most effective treatment for patients with this devastating disorder. In spite of the more than half a century of clinical experience, and the introduction of a large number of chemical divers antipsychotic drugs, several recent large, multi-center studies have shown that, although novel (second generation) antipsychotics seem to be tolerated somewhat better (especially in relation to neurological side effects), their therapeutic potential is comparable to that of first generation antipsychotics. Hence there is still an urgent need for better pharmacological tools to treat schizophrenic patients. The current paper reviews the benefits and shortcomings of the currently available drugs, and gives an outlook towards the drugs and targets that are currently being pursued in clinical trials. Given the uncertainty of the drug discovery process and the relatively poor predictive validity of the currently available animal models, it is, at present, impossible to predict which of these drugs will ultimately become available for treating schizophrenic patients.

• Authors: Bart A Ellenbroek
• Journal: Neuropharmacology (Neuropharmacology) Vol. 62 Issue 3 Pg. 1371-80 (Mar 2012) ISSN: 1873-7064 [Electronic] England
• PMID: 21420988 (Publication Type: Journal Article, Review)
• Copyright: Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Chemical References

• Antipsychotic Agents
• Dopamine Agents
• Excitatory Amino Acid Agents

Topics

• Animals
• Antipsychotic Agents (metabolism, therapeutic use)
• Dopamine Agents (metabolism, therapeutic use)
• Drug Discovery (methods, trends)
• Excitatory Amino Acid Agents (metabolism, therapeutic use)
• Humans
• Psychopharmacology
• Schizophrenia (drug therapy, metabolism)
• Treatment Outcome