Prospective, open study of long-acting injected risperidone versus oral antipsychotics in 88 chronically psychotic Patients

Introduction: A long-acting, injected, carbohydrate-microsphere preparation of risperidone (RLAI; Risperdal Consta\uae) is reported to be safe and effective in chronic psychotic illnesses but, as its long-term and comparative efficacy remain unclear, this study compared clinical status during oral antipsychotic treatment versus conversion to RLAI. Methods: Psychotic patients (n=88; initial BPRS=93\ub15) were treated for 6 months with clinically chosen oral medication and then converted to biweekly RLAI for the first 6 months (66 months matched mirror comparison) and then for another 18 months. Clinical status in the two treatment periods and in the 18 months of follow-up was compared with measures including BPRS improvement (primary outcome), CGI variants and SF-36 ratings. Results: RLAI (at a mean dose of 47mg/2 weeks at six and up to 23.1\ub13.3 months) was associated with major improvements in all outcome measures (p