Depot antipsychotic use in schizophrenia: an East Asian perspective

Abstract

There was a wide variation in the prevalence of depot antipsychotic prescription, suggesting that it may not be guided by any recognizable principles and is more likely determined by local traditions and prescription culture. There is a need to re-examine the risk-benefit profile of each patient before deciding on the initiation or continuation of depot antipsychotic medication.

Long-Acting Injectable Antipsychotics: An Underutilized Treatment Option

“…In most Western countries, the prescription rate is below 10% of all antipsychotics. [2][3][4] This low rate is in contrast to evidence from naturalistic studies repeatedly demonstrating lower relapse and rehospitalization rates in patients receiving LAIs compared to oral treatment. [5][6][7] Although some colleagues might point out that recent randomized controlled trials (RCTs) [8][9][10] failed to corroborate results from the naturalistic studies, a broad consensus has developed that the patients in these RCTs (ie, those who are motivated to participate in a demanding clinical trial) are most likely not representative of those we see in our everyday clinical routine (ie, patients facing compliance problems).…”

Baseline characteristics and initial treatment decisions for patients with schizophrenia at risk of treatment nonadherence

“…However, findings from the W-SOHO study suggest that the use of depot antipsychotics is low (6.6%) in the East Asian countries and regions (Korea, Malaysia and Taiwan) assessed 13. This low use of depot antipsychotics in outpatients may be explained by physician preference to prescribe depot antipsychotics to inpatients in some countries and regions (for example, it has been estimated that 10% to 20% of inpatients in Taiwan receive depot antipsychotics as part of their treatment regimen) 12,36. However, more studies are needed to explore regional variations in antipsychotic prescription patterns and determine specific reasons for regional differences.…”

Pharmacotherapy for schizophrenic inpatients in East Asia – Changes and challenges

“…This paper will use several selected data results from our surveys conducted in China, Korea, Japan, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Singapore in 2001 and 2004. The results were reported in several international journals (Chong et al, 2004;Sim et al, 2004a;Sim et al, 2004b;Sim et al, 2004c;Sim et al, 2007;Uchida et al, 2007;Yoshimura et al, 2006). Authors of this paper acted as chief investigators of the 2001 and 2004 surveys.…”