Antipsychotic Long-acting Injections

Antipsychotic long-acting injections (LAIs) were introduced in the 1960s to improve treatment adherence in schizophrenia. Subsequently, first-generation antipsychotic LAIs became widely used in many countries. Recently there has been a resurgence of interest in LAIs that partly reflects the introduction of several second-generation antipsychotic LAIs. This book brings together clinical and research findings on LAIs in a comprehensive volume, with chapters being written by international experts. Though the book concentrates on the use of LAIs in schizophrenia, the emerging evidence base for the use of LAIs in bipolar disorder is also discussed. A repeated theme throughout the book is the importance of prescribing decisions - whether for oral medication or an LAI, reflecting a shared decision making process by the prescriber and patient. The authors stress that antipsychotic LAIs are not suitable for all patients and are only one possible solution to adherence problems. Providing a synthesis and broad picture of the place of LAIs in current clinical practice, and looking at both their advantages and disadvantages, this book will be valuable for psychiatrists, psychopharmacologists, and pharmacists.

Table of Contents:
1. Antipsychotic adherence in schizophrenia ; 2. Pharmacology of antipsychotic long-acting injections ; 3. Safety and adverse effects of antipsychotic long-acting injections ; 4. First generation (conventional) antipsychotic long-acting injections ; 5. Risperidone antipsychotic long-acting injection ; 6. Recently introduced antipsychotic long-acting injections: olanzapine pamoate and paliperidone palmitate ; 7. Antipsychotic long-acting injections in early intervention services ; 8. Attitudes to antipsychotic long-acting injections ; 9. Patient choice and improving the uptake of long-acting injectable medication ; 10. Prescribing patterns and determinants of use of antipsychotic long-acting injections: an international perspective ; 11. The role of antipsychotic long-acting Injections in current practice

About the Author :
Dr. Lauriello specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of psychotic disorders, most notably schizophrenia. In June 2009, he became only the third permanent chair of the MU department of psychiatry in its 50 year history. Dr. Lauriello also serves as the founding Executive Medical Director of the University of Missouri Psychiatric Center. Prior to coming to the University of Missouri Dr. Lauriello was the clinical Vice Chair at the University of New Mexico. There he directed the UNM Schizophrenia Research Group, which focused on clinical trials and neuroimaging. He was Executive Medical Director of the UNM Psychiatric Center for nearly a decade, and he served as a UNM site principal investigator for the Mental Illness and Neuroscience Discovery (MIND) Institute, a consortium of universities, schools of medicine, brain research institutions and laboratories in Minnesota, Massachusetts and New Mexico.