Book contents
- The Clozapine Handbook
- The Clozapine Handbook
- Copyright page
- Additional material
- Contents
- Foreword
- Introduction
- 1 The Efficacy Story: Treatment-Resistant Schizophrenia, Psychogenic Polydipsia, Treatment-Intolerant Schizophrenia, Suicidality, Violence, Mania and Parkinson’s Disease Psychosis
- 2 Addressing Clozapine Positive Symptom Nonresponse in Schizophrenia Spectrum Patients
- 3 Initiating Clozapine
- 4 Discontinuing Clozapine and Management of Cholinergic Rebound
- 5 Binding Profile, Metabolism, Kinetics, Drug Interactions and Use of Plasma Levels
- 6 Understanding Hematologic Monitoring and Benign Ethnic Neutropenia
- 7 Managing Constipation
- 8 Managing Sedation, Orthostasis and Tachycardia
- 9 Managing Sialorrhea
- 10 Managing Seizure Risk and Stuttering
- 11 Managing Metabolic Adverse Effects
- 12 Fever, Myocarditis, Interstitial Nephritis, DRESS, Serositis and Cardiomyopathy
- 13 Managing Enuresis and Incontinence, Priapism, Venous Thromboembolism, Neuroleptic Malignant Syndrome, Tardive Dyskinesia and Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
- 14 Eosinophilia, Leukocytosis, Thrombocytopenia, Thrombocytosis, Anemia, Hepatic Function Abnormalities
- 15 Special Topics: Child and Adolescent Patients, Elderly Patients, Patients With Intellectual Disability, Pregnancy and Risk for Major Congenital Malformation, Lactation, Overdose, Postmortem Redistribution
- Index
- References
2 - Addressing Clozapine Positive Symptom Nonresponse in Schizophrenia Spectrum Patients
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 19 October 2021
Book contents
- The Clozapine Handbook
- The Clozapine Handbook
- Copyright page
- Additional material
- Contents
- Foreword
- Introduction
- 1 The Efficacy Story: Treatment-Resistant Schizophrenia, Psychogenic Polydipsia, Treatment-Intolerant Schizophrenia, Suicidality, Violence, Mania and Parkinson’s Disease Psychosis
- 2 Addressing Clozapine Positive Symptom Nonresponse in Schizophrenia Spectrum Patients
- 3 Initiating Clozapine
- 4 Discontinuing Clozapine and Management of Cholinergic Rebound
- 5 Binding Profile, Metabolism, Kinetics, Drug Interactions and Use of Plasma Levels
- 6 Understanding Hematologic Monitoring and Benign Ethnic Neutropenia
- 7 Managing Constipation
- 8 Managing Sedation, Orthostasis and Tachycardia
- 9 Managing Sialorrhea
- 10 Managing Seizure Risk and Stuttering
- 11 Managing Metabolic Adverse Effects
- 12 Fever, Myocarditis, Interstitial Nephritis, DRESS, Serositis and Cardiomyopathy
- 13 Managing Enuresis and Incontinence, Priapism, Venous Thromboembolism, Neuroleptic Malignant Syndrome, Tardive Dyskinesia and Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
- 14 Eosinophilia, Leukocytosis, Thrombocytopenia, Thrombocytosis, Anemia, Hepatic Function Abnormalities
- 15 Special Topics: Child and Adolescent Patients, Elderly Patients, Patients With Intellectual Disability, Pregnancy and Risk for Major Congenital Malformation, Lactation, Overdose, Postmortem Redistribution
- Index
- References
Summary
Clozapine provides the best option for treatment-resistant schizophrenia patients, but at least 40% will have suboptimal response. Although numerous adjunctive pharmacological strategies have been explored in clozapine nonresponders, none present a compelling picture of superior outcomes. Echoing this sentiment, a 2015 review on biological approaches notes that improvement is modest with medication strategies, although electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is more promising despite the paucity of controlled studies. These conclusions may engender a certain amount of therapeutic nihilism; however, before deciding that clozapine is ineffective and embarking on a litany of adjunctive options, there is a short list of strategies that may convert nonresponders into responders. Given the tepid response to adjunctive options, the best hope for most patients is optimizing clozapine exposure through assessment of plasma levels and addressing tolerability issues that impose barriers to titration.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- The Clozapine HandbookStahl's Handbooks, pp. 44 - 59Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2019
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