The Role of Antypsychotic Therapy in the Development of Akathisia in Patients with Schizophrenia

Abstract

The use of antipsychotic therapy in patients with schizophrenia is associated with the development of a wide range of adverse events, among which akathisia is one of the most common. Objective: to assess the risk of akathisia in patients with schizophrenia receiving various antipsychotic therapy. Patients and methods. A continuous method examined 250 inpatients with a verified diagnosis of schizophrenia. The akathisia assessment was performed using the Barnes Akathisia Rating Scale (BARS). The odds ratio was estimated using the MedCalc® online calculator. Results: akathisia was detected in 92 (36.8%) examined. The combination of two antipsychotic drugs has an increased risk of akathisia in patients with schizophrenia OR = 1.69 (95% CI: 1.0–2.88; p = 0.04), however the use of conventional and atypical drugs was associated with a reduction in risk (OR = 0.45 (95% CI: 0.21–0.95; p = 0.037)). Patients receiving basic therapy zuclopenthixol decanoate had increased risk of akathisia 4 times as compared to haloperidol decanoate (OR = 3.85 (95% CI: 1,26–12,22; p = 0.021)). Conclusions: It was shown that the choice of antipsychotic therapy should be based not only on the actual mental state of the patient, but also considering the potential risk of akathisia.