The long term — Maximising potential for rehabilitation in patients with schizophrenia

Patients with schizophrenia show low employment rates and low Quality of Life (QoL), and rehabilitation aims to maximise daily functioning, improve social interactions, and develop employment prospects. Evaluation of long-term treatment effectiveness should address these issues. Choice of medication can influence patient compliance and adverse experience of side effects may act as a barrier to rehabilitation. The Schizophrenia Trial of Aripiprazole (STAR), in which patients were randomised to receive 26 weeks of the atypical antipsychotic, aripiprazole (n = 284) or standard of care medication (n = 271) showed that aripiprazole demonstrated significantly better effectiveness in terms of Investigator Assessment Questionnaire (IAQ) total score. Like other atypical antipsychotic agents, aripiprazole shows a low rate of extrapyramidal adverse events. In addition, unlike the majority of other agents, aripiprazole treatment has a low risk of weight gain, translating into health-related QoL benefits. In summary, newer, atypical agents may improve efficacy, patient satisfaction, and aid long-term rehabilitation.