Introduction Evidence supports clozapine as the best treatment in terms of efficacy, effectiveness and well-being, and as the gold standard in treatment-resistant psychotic disorders. Clozapine remains still underused, suffering initiation delays from 1.1 to 9.7 years. Furthermore, there is a scarcity of data about patterns of use, showing high variability worldwide (0.6-189.2/100. 000 inhabitants). Objectives The main objective of this work is to carry out an analysis of the use of clozapine in our mental health catchment area. Thus, off-label use, the percentage of patients with clozapine depending on diagnosis, age and sex, and its use in mono and polytherapy are established. Besides, dosage and time between the first contact and the start of treatment with clozapine are recorded. Methods A descriptive study has been developed on the patients with clozapine who consulted in the catchment area of the Jerez Mental Health Service between 2018 and 2019. Data were extracted from medical records. Results From our population of 456.752 inhabitants, 449 patients received clozapine. 278 (61.9%) had a schizophrenia diagnosis; 33 (7.3%) delusional disorder and 34 (7,6%) schizoaffective disorder. The off-label use of clozapine was 19,1 %. The average mean dose used was 246,2 mg/day and 59% of the patients on clozapine were on polytherapy. Only 14,7% of these patients had a previous trial with clozapine on monotherapy. Conclusions Rates of polytherapy, previous trials of clozapine monotherapy, off label use, rates of discontinuation and other variables are to be considered to precisely map the adequate use of clozapine in clinical settings. Disclosure No significant relationships.
Introduction The response to antipsychotic treatment in patients with schizophrenia varies from 14 to 34% in first episodes, and from 45 to 61% in more chronic patients. Nevertheless, the concept of treatment resistant schizophrenia (TRS) is still a matter of great controversy. Recently, an international group of experts has developed the TRRIP criteria to define treatment resistant schizophrenia (TRS), including an ultra-resistance category for clozapine resistant patients. Up till now, there is a scarcity of epidemiological data of TRS with TRRIP criteria. Objectives This study attempts to identify the population diagnosed of schizophrenia that fulfils the minima TRRIP criteria for TRS in our mental health catchment area. Methods A descriptive and retrospective study has been developed on the patients diagnosed of schizophrenia (ICD.10, F.20) in the catchment area of the Mental Health Service at Jerez Hospital between 2018 and 2019. TRRIP criteria were applied for two independent researchers and, in case of disagreement, consensus was reached by using the LEAD procedure. Results The total number of ICD-10 schizophrenic patients identified was 590, from a population of 456.752 in 2019. A group of these, 206 patients (35%) qualified as TRS according to the minima TRRIP criteria, 50% were positive subtype and the rest the negative one. 46.8% were treated with clozapine. Conclusions Consensus criteria of TRS minimise the heterogeneity of epidemiological data in literature. Our data suggest a prevalence rate of TRS lower than that of similar studies. Accordingly, a comprehensive understanding of this population would undoubtedly contribute to improve preventive and therapeutic strategies. Disclosure No significant relationships.
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