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Discovered in 1958, it blocks the
effect of dopamine at particular sites.
For many years the treatment of schizophrenia
relied on drugs such as haloperidol.
Although these drugs were effective
against the positive symptoms of the
illness such as hallucinations and
delusions, they were ineffective against
the negative symptoms such as social
withdrawal.
In addition, these traditional drugs
can have unpleasant side-effects,
e.g. extrapyramidal symptoms such
as tremor, in up to 90% of patients,
which reduce patients' quality of
life and often result in non-compliance
with treatment.
Recent developments
in the drug treatment of schizophrenia
Recent years have seen major
advances in the understanding of schizophrenia.
The discovery that a second brain neurotransmitter,
serotonin, also appears to be associated
with schizophrenia led the Janssen Research
Foundation to conduct a major research
programme to investigate a new class
of chemical compounds. Called SDAs (serotonin
and dopamine antagonists), these compounds
work by blocking the transmission of
both dopamine and serotonin in the brain
at particular receptor subtypes (serotonin
2A and dopamine 2). |
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RISPERDAL™ has been prescribed for
millions of patients worldwide, and
is available in more than 100 countries.
Research on the use of RISPERDAL™
is continuing.
Do you want to know more about
our R&D expertise in this field?
Please explore Psychiatry
24x7, an Internet site completely
dedicated to schizophrenia and other
psychoses.
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