Long‐term efficacy and safety of aripiprazole in patients with schizophrenia, schizophreniform disorder, or schizoaffective disorder: 26‐week prospective study

Jan 22, 2009Psychiatry and clinical neurosciences

Aripiprazole’s long-term effectiveness and safety in treating schizophrenia and related disorders over 26 weeks

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Abstract

A total of 300 Korean patients with schizophrenia or related disorders showed significant improvements in symptoms after 26 weeks of treatment with aripiprazole.

Aripiprazole was associated with rapid and significant reductions in the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) total score.
First-episode drug-naive patients experienced greater efficacy compared to those with prior relapses.
Treatment resulted in a significant decrease in serum prolactin levels.
Participants exhibited mild weight gain during the study.
The findings suggest no significant difference in aripiprazole response based on ethnicity.

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AIMS: To date there have been no reports of long-term efficacy of aripiprazole in Asian populations. The aim of the present study was therefore to investigate the long-term efficacy, safety and tolerability of aripiprazole in a large number of patients with schizophrenia, schizophreniform disorder, or schizoaffective disorder in Korea.

METHODS: This study was a prospective, multicenter, single-group, 26-week open study of patients with schizophrenia, schizophreniform disorder, or schizoaffective disorder. A total of 300 Korean patients participated in the study. The primary efficacy measure was the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) total score, and secondary efficacy measures included the PANSS positive and negative subscales, Clinical Global Impression-Severity of Illness (CGI-S). Tolerability and safety were assessed by monitoring the frequency and severity of treatment-emergent adverse events, extrapyramidal symptoms (EPS), vital signs, weight, and laboratory tests.

RESULTS: Aripiprazole produced rapid and significant improvements on all efficacy measures. As evidenced by PANSS total score, PANSS positive subscales and the CGI-S scores, first-episode drug-naive patients demonstrated significantly greater efficacy relative to patients who had previously experienced one or more episodes of relapse. Aripiprazole was associated with significant decrease of serum prolactin level. The subjects showed mild weight gain.

CONCLUSION: Aripiprazole is an effective antipsychotic in the long-term treatment of both positive and negative symptoms. This study extends the findings of previous long-term studies, and has found that there is no significant difference with regard to ethnicity in response to aripiprazole.

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Long‐term efficacy and safety of aripiprazole in patients with schizophrenia, schizophreniform disorder, or schizoaffective disorder: 26‐week prospective study

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