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Objective: Increasing evidence suggests that immunological and inflammatory dysfunctions may play an important role in predisposition, onset, and progression of schizophrenia and related psychosis. The activation of cells of the mononuclear phagocyte system, especially microglia and monocytes, has been reported in schizophrenia. We carried out this systematic review and meta-analysis to investigate if there are significant differences in monocyte count comparing healthy controls with people suffering from schizophrenia and related disorders. Methods: We searched main electronic databases; nine records met all our criteria and were included in the meta-analysis. Meta-analyses based on random effects models have been carried out generating pooled standardised mean differences (SMDs) of monocyte count in peripheral blood between schizophrenia and related psychosis and healthy controls. Heterogeneity was estimated. Relevant sensitivity and subgroup analyses were conducted. Results: Patients showed higher monocyte count as compared with healthy control (SMD = 0.393; p = 0.001). Heterogeneity across studies was from moderate to high (I2 = 65.952%); sensitivity analysis leaving out two studies responsible for most of the heterogeneity showed a slightly higher SMD. Subgroup analyses confirmed this result, showing no significant differences in the effect size across different study characteristics. Conclusions: Monocyte count can be considered an indirect marker of microglia activation in the central nervous system. Thus, the observed higher monocyte count in patients could be considered as a possible peripheral marker of microgliaʼs activation in schizophrenia disorder.

Introduction Information on the off–label use of Long–Acting Injectable (LAI) antipsychotics in the real world is lacking. In this study, we aimed to identify the sociodemographic and clinical features of patients treated with on– vs off–label LAIs and predictors of off–label First– or Second–Generation Antipsychotic (FGA vs. SGA) LAI choice in everyday clinical practice. Method In a naturalistic national cohort of 449 patients who initiated LAI treatment in the STAR Network Depot Study, two groups were identified based on off– or on–label prescriptions. A multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to test several clinically relevant variables and identify those associated with the choice of FGA vs SGA prescription in the off–label group. Results SGA LAIs were more commonly prescribed in everyday practice, without significant differences in their on– and off–label use. Approximately 1 in 4 patients received an off–label prescription. In the off–label group, the most frequent diagnoses were bipolar disorder (67.5%) or any personality disorder (23.7%). FGA vs SGA LAI choice was significantly associated with BPRS thought disorder (OR = 1.22, CI95% 1.04 to 1.43, p = 0.015) and hostility/suspiciousness (OR = 0.83, CI95% 0.71 to 0.97, p = 0.017) dimensions. The likelihood of receiving an SGA LAI grew steadily with the increase of the BPRS thought disturbance score. Conversely, a preference towards prescribing an FGA was observed with higher scores at the BPRS hostility/suspiciousness subscale. Conclusion Our study is the first to identify predictors of FGA vs SGA choice in patients treated with off–label LAI antipsychotics. Demographic characteristics, i.e. age, sex, and substance/alcohol use co–morbidities did not appear to influence the choice towards FGAs or SGAs. Despite a lack of evidence, clinicians tend to favour FGA over SGA LAIs in bipolar or personality disorder patients with relevant hostility. Further research is needed to evaluate treatment adherence and clinical effectiveness of these prescriptive patterns.

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