Antipsychotic injections upon hospital discharge were associated with a 75 percent reduction in 30-day rehospitalizations when compared with oral antipsychotics, according to a Rutgers Health study. The findings, published in the Journal of Clinical Psychopharmacology, support the use of long-acting injections over daily pills for both medical and financial reasons. “Controlling symptoms to avoid hospitalization is even more important with schizophrenia than other conditions because each relapse makes the condition harder to treat going forward,” said Daniel Greer, a clinical assistant professor at the Rutgers Ernest Mario School of Pharmacy and lead author of the study.
Standards of care for schizophrenia treatment already call for long-acting injections over daily oral medication but still list pills as an acceptable treatment option, said Greer, adding that patients still choose pills over injections for reasons ranging from insurance coverage to fear of needles. To read the full story.