RESUMEN
Background: Prevalence of chronic schizophrenia is somewhat less than 1% of the population but this is one of the most important psychiatric illness due to its early onset, chronicity and associated disability.Methods: A prospective and observational study was carried out on 76 patients for 12 months. Patients of either sex, aged between 18 to 50 years who were diagnosed as schizophrenia according to DSM IV-TR were screened and recruited for the study. Prescriptions were analyzed for socio demographic details and psychotropic drugs prescribed.Results: Out of 76 patients 46 (60.53%) were males, maximum occurred 19 (41.30%) between 18 and 25 years of age. Females were 30 (39.47%), maximum occurred 12 (40%) between 34 - 39 years of age. 52 (68.42%) were from urban area and 24 (31.57%) were from rural area. 26 (34.21%) were illiterate, 24 (31.58%) primary educated, 16 (21.05%) secondary educated and 10 (13.16%) higher secondary and above. 20 (26.32%) were unemployed, students 9 (11.84%), housewives 19 (25%), agricultural workers 10 (13.16%), nonagricultural outdoor workers 4 (5.26%) and nonagricultural indoor workers were 14 (18.42%). Only atypical antipsychotics were prescribed .Olanzapine was prescribed in 30 (39.47%), risperidone 16 (21.05%), amisulpride 13 (17.11%), aripiprazole 11 (14.47%) and quetiapine 06 (7.89%) respectively.Conclusions: The sociodemographic factors associated with schizophrenia are urban locality, illiteracy, low socioeconomic status and unemployment. The treatment pattern observed correlates with the changing trends in the treatment of schizophrenia worldwide.
RESUMEN
Background: Schizophrenia is one of the most commonly encountered psychiatric disorders. It is characterized by impairment in perception or expression of reality, leading to occupational and social dysfunction. Now a day’s mainstay of treatment of schizophrenia is by using atypical antipsychotics. Amisulpride and olanzapine are atypical antipsychotics which are commonly used in treatment of schizophrenia. The current study is undertaken to assess the efficacy of amisulpride which is a relatively newer antipsychotics against existing antipsychotic olanzapine.Methods: This was designed as a single-blind, prospective, parallel-group, observational study. Eighty adult patients of either sex were randomized to receive standard doses of the two drugs orally for 12 weeks, with follow up at 4 and 8 weeks. Effectiveness was assessed by change in the score of Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS) and Clinical Global Impression (CGI) score during the treatment period. Data were entered in Microsoft excel and statistical analysis were done using graph pad and p value <0.05 considered to be statistically significant.Results: Out of 80 adults patients 76 patients were evaluated by dividing into two groups, 38 patients were included in each group. Final BPRS score was less for olanzapine as compared to amisulpride (p<0.001). Improvement in CGI score is more in olanzapine group than amisulpride group which became statistically significant from 8th weeks onwards.Conclusions: Both amisulpride and olanzapine are very effective in controlling the symptoms of schizophrenia which is evident by significant decrease in BPRS, CGI-S and CGI-I score, but efficacy of amisulpride is still inferior to olanzapine.