IntroductionInvoluntary admission of mentally ill patients tends to be related to clinical severity and worst therapeutic response.ObjectivesTo evaluate whether there is a relationship between involuntary admission and prescription of two or more antipsychotics (that is, polytherapy) among patients with schizophrenia and other psychosis.MethodsA total of 241 patients (40.2% females, mean age 39.7+/−13.0 years) consecutively admitted during 2009 to a psychiatric inpatient ward with diagnosis of schizophrenia and other psychoses were assessed.ResultsOut of the total sample, 150 (62.2%) patients were on polytherapy, and of the 241 patients 134 (55.6%) were involuntarily admitted. Involuntary admission was unrelated to age (p = 0.335), specific diagnosis (p = 0.452), or length of psychosis (p = 0.234). On the contrary, it was related to gender (61.8% of males vs. 46.4% of females were involuntary, p = 0.018) and to polytherapy/monotherapy prescription (62.0% of patients on polytherapy vs. 45.1% of patients on monotherapy were involuntarily admitted; and 53.3% of voluntary patients vs. 69.4% of involuntary were on polytherapy p = 0.010). After controlling for age, gender, specific diagnosis and length of psychosis the association between involuntary admission and being in polytherapy remained significant (p = 0.047).ConclusionsPatients involuntarily admitted are more prone to be on antipsychotic polytherapy.
IntroductionWe report the successful management of a 57-year-old woman with a 20 year diagnostic of paranoid schizophrenia (first visit November, 1995). She presented several comorbidities (arterial hypertension, diabetes mellitus and morbid obesity), with a history of five previous hospitalizations (1995, 2012, January and May 2014, and April 2016).Aims/methodsThe patient was always prescribed depot antipsychotics: she was treated for 14 years with Zuclopentixol depot (discontinued due to dermic adverse reactions and weight gain). After a period with oral paliperidone (from 2012 until 2013) and due to lack of adherence to oral therapy, in August 2013 she was prescribed paliperidone palmitate. The treatment was discontinued after nine months (May 2014) due to weight gain, a significant increase of serum prolactin levels and two psychotic relapses that led to hospital admissions.ResultsShe was then prescribed Fluphenazine decanoate depot for one year and 4 months, but she was switched to Aripiprazole once monthly (AOM) in September 2015 to avoid metabolic syndrome.ConclusionsNon-personalized antipsychotic treatment in a patient with a complicated comorbidity history can result in lack of compliance and a risk of relapse, and in a worsening of her medical conditions, with the consequential negative impact in her functioning and quality of life. Based on our results, the treatment with AOM resulted in a positive evolution of the patient, with a good tolerability profile, in an improvement of treatment-caused adverse events (weight loss, and prolactin serum levels normalization); all factors that enable treatment adherence and good clinical response.Disclosure of interestThe authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.
Objectives: Determine the prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors within the serious mental pathology.Background: Cardiovascular risk factors are the leading cause of death in the general population and its high prevalence among patients with mental disorders is known.
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