European Commission Approves XEPLION® for Treatment of Schizophrenia
Beerse, Belgium (March 9, 2011) — Janssen-Cilag International NV today announced that XEPLION® (paliperidone palmitate), a once monthly, long-acting injectable, antipsychotic, has received approval from the European Commission for the treatment of schizophrenia.
 Schizophrenia is relatively common and the prevalence is similar around the world. The lifetime risk for schizophrenia is estimated to be one person in 100, and appears to be the same for men and women up to age 60 years.[1] Schizophrenia is a devastating mental illness for both the patients …

Abilify® Medication Guide
Generic name: aripiprazole
Read this Medication Guide before you start taking ABILIFY and each time you get a refill. There may be new information. This Medication Guide does not take the place of talking to your healthcare provider about your medical condition or treatment.
What is the most important information I should know about ABILIFY (aripiprazole)?
(For other side effects, also see “What are the possible side effects of ABILIFY?”).
Serious side effects may happen when you take ABILIFY, including:
• Increased risk of death in elderly patients with dementia-related psychosis: Medicines …

Schizophrenia
A. Characteristic symptoms: Two (or more) of the following, each present for a significant portion of time during a 1-month period (or less if successfully treated):
(1) delusions
(2) hallucinations
(3) disorganized speech (e.g., frequent derailment or incoherence)
(4) grossly disorganized or catatonic behavior
(5) negative symptoms, i.e., affective flattening, alogia, or avolition
Note: Only one Criterion A symptom is required if delusions are bizarre or hallucinations consist of a voice keeping up a running commentary on the person’s behavior or thoughts, or two or more voices conversing with each other.
B. Social/occupational dysfunction: For a …

What is psychotherapy?
Psychotherapy, or “talk therapy,” is a way to treat people with a mental disorder by helping them understand their illness. It teaches people strategies and gives them tools to deal with stress and unhealthy thoughts and behaviors. Psychotherapy helps patients manage their symptoms better and function at their best in everyday life.
Sometimes psychotherapy alone may be the best treatment for a person, depending on the illness and its severity. Other times, psychotherapy is combined with medications. Therapists work with an individual or families to devise an appropriate treatment …

Child and Adolescent Mental Illness Statistics
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a condition that becomes apparent in some children in the preschool and early school years. It is hard for these children to control their behavior and/or pay attention. It is estimated that between 3 and 5 percent of children have ADHD, or approximately 2 million children in the United States. This means that in a classroom of 25 to 30 children, it is likely that at least one will have ADHD. (Source: NIMH, www.nimh.nih.gov, accessed February 11, 2009)
Autism …

SCHIZOPHRENIA A Nonexistent Disease
The word “schizophrenia” has a scientific sound that seems to give it inherent credibility and a charisma that seems to dazzle people. In his book Molecules of the Mind – The Brave New Science of Molecular Psychology, University of Maryland journalism professor Jon Franklin calls schizophrenia and depression “the two classic forms of mental illness” (Dell Publishing Co., 1987, p. 119). According to the cover article in the July 6, 1992 Time magazine, schizophrenia is the “most devilish of mental illnesses” (p. 53). This …

Zeldox (ziprasidone)
How does Zeldox work? What will it do for me?
Ziprasidone belongs to the class of medications called antipsychotics. It is used to control the symptoms of schizophrenia and related mental health disorders. It works by adjusting the balance of chemicals in the brain that are involved in schizophrenia.
Your doctor may have suggested this medication for conditions other than those listed in these drug information articles. As well, some forms of this medication may not be used for all of the conditions discussed here. If you have not discussed this …

FDA approves Latuda to treat schizophrenia in adults
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Latuda (lurasidone HCl) tablets for the treatment of adults with schizophrenia.
Schizophrenia affects about 1 percent of the U.S. population, ages 18 years and older, in a given year. The most prominent symptoms include hallucinations, delusions, disordered thinking and behavior, and suspiciousness. Hearing voices that other people don’t hear is the most common type of hallucination. These experiences can make people with the disorder fearful and withdrawn.
“Schizophrenia can be a devastating illness requiring lifelong treatment,” said …

Your Drug May Be Your Problem:
How and Why to Stop Taking Psychiatric Drugs - Book Review
If you need specific advice about how to stop taking one or more psychiatric drugs, this is the book to read. In this respect, this book fills in a gap left in other books by Dr. Peter Breggin I have read, including Psychiatric Drugs: Hazards to the Brain (1983), Toxic Psychiatry (1991), and Talking Back to Prozac (1998). In this book Drs. Breggin & Cohen also make clear they think the concept of “mental …

Antipsychotics

What are antipsychotics used for?
Antipsychotics are usually used to help treat people with schizophrenia and similar conditions such as psychosis. They are also used to treat other problems such as mania, hypomania and mood disorders. Occasionally antipsychotics are used to help manage agitation or anxiety. Medicines are often used to treat more than one condition, so if you are not sure why you have been prescribed an antipsychotic, you should discuss this with your doctor.
Antipsychotics are classified into two groups, ‘typical’ or ‘first-generation’ antipsychotics and ‘atypical’ or …