New insight on effectiveness of antipsychotic drugs

Prof. dr. Christiaan Vinkers and dr. Jurjen Luykx have co-authored this paper on their pioneering research into the effectiveness of antipsychotic drugs. This month the article was published in the Lancet Psychiatry.

Psychotic disorders are common and, unfortunately, treatment is not equally effective for everyone. One of the keystones of the treatment of psychotic disorders (or: schizophrenia) is the use of antipsychotics. There are dozens of such drugs on the market but whether there are differences in effects between the various drugs has so far remained unclear. Nor has it been clarified whether the effects of these drugs – that are being observed in clinical trials – are directly translatable to clinical practice. 
In this study, the researchers compared data from more than a hundred thousand patients in large national registries and from clinical trials side by side. This has shown which antipsychotics work best in people suffering from psychosis. It also shows that there are relevant differences in effects observed in the consultation setting and those observed in clinical trials. In doing so, this research can contribute to improving the treatment of people suffering from psychoses and possibly inspire future research on differences in treatment outcomes between the consultation room and clinical studies.