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Every schizophrenic outpatient maintained on antipsychotic medication should have the benefit of an adequate trial without drugs.
~ G. Gardos and J. Cole, Maintenance antipsychotic therapy: is the cure worse than the disease? Am J Psychiatry 1976; 133:32-36

What you need to know about schizophrenia

Although the exact cause is not known, many scientists believe that schizophrenia is brought on by an imbalance of key chemicals in the brain, called neurotransmitters.   Learn more about the way that Abilify is thought to adjust the balance of key chemicals in the brain.

The human brain is made up of billions of nerve cells.   These cells communicate by releasing chemicals known as "neurotransmitters."   Two key neurotransmitters that are needed for brain function are dopamine and serotonin, which play a crucial role in emotional health.
It is believed that schizophrenia is a result of an imbalance of dopamine and serotonin, with too much of these chemicals in certain areas of the brain and too little in others.   Pharmacological treatments for schizophrenia aim to balance the levels of one or both of these neurotransmitters.

How Abilify is Thought to Work

We now understand that schizophrenia is an illness, and, like any illness, it can be treated with medication.
David Daniel, MD, psychiatrist, George Washington University

Increases in blood sugar levels (hyperglycemia), in some cases serious and associated with coma or death, have been reported in patients taking medicines like Abilify.   Lightheadedness or faintness caused by a sudden change in heart rate and blood pressure when rising quickly from a sitting or lying position (orthostatic hypotension) has been reported with Abilify.   Medicines like Abilify can affect your judgment, thinking, or motor skills.   Other common side effects include: constipation, an inner sense of restlessness or need to move (akathisia), headache, nausea, upset stomach, vomiting, agitation, anxiety, insomnia, sleepiness, lightheadedness, and tremor.

What Causes Schizophrenia

No one knows the exact causes of schizophrenia.   Experts have found that, like any other illness, some factors may increase the risk.   These factors may be in a person's genes. Imbalances of certain chemicals in the brain are thought to lead to symptoms of the illness.   Medicine plays a key role in balancing these chemicals.   Geodon works to balance the chemicals in the brain so you can feel better.

How Geodon Works

It is not known exactly how Geodon works.   Doctors believe that Geodon helps balance certain natural chemicals in your brain, which helps treat schizophrenia symptoms.   And that can help you feel better.

As with other drugs effective in treating schizophrenia, the mechanism of action of Geodon is unknown.   However, its efficacy in schizophrenia is proposed to be mediated through a combination of dopamine type 2 (D2) and serotonin type 2 (5-HT2) antagonism.

The most common side effects of Geodon are: feeling very tired or sleepy; upset stomach; constipation or diarrhea; feeling dizzy; muscle movements that you are not able to control, such as tremor or shuffling; rash; restlessness; increased cough/runny nose.   Although these are the most common side effects for Geodon, others may occur.   Adverse events that occurred in 1% or more of patients treated with Geodon: asthenia, accidental injury, chest pain, abdominal pain, flu syndrome, fever, accidental fall, face edema, chills, photosensitivity reaction, flank pain, hypothermia, motor vehicle accident; tachycardia, hypertension, postural hypotension; nausea, constipation, dyspepsia, diarrhea, dry mouth, anorexia, vomiting; myalgia; somnolence, akathisia, dizziness, agitation, extrapyramidal syndrome, tremor, dystonia, hypertonia, dyskinesia, hostility, twitching, paresthesia, confusion, vertigo, hypokinesia, hyperkinesia, abnormal gait, oculogyric crisis, hypesthesia, ataxia, amnesia, cogwheel rigidity, delirium, hypotonia, akinesia, dysarthria, withdrawal syndrome, buccoglossal syndrome, choreoathetosis, diplopia, incoordination, neuropathy; respiratory tract infection, rhinitis, cough increased; dyspnea; rash, fungal dermatitis; abnormal vision.

Years of research have shown that schizophrenia is a biologically based brain disease.   The most recent advances in brain imaging have confirmed imbalances of two brain chemicals -- dopamine and serotonin -- in those who suffer from schizophrenia.   Dopamine is responsible for emotions and motivation; serotonin acts as a messenger and stimulates muscle movement, switching nerves on and off. The brains of people with schizophrenia have elevated dopamine and serotonin activity.

Like schizophrenia and affective disorders, schizoaffective disorder is caused by a chemical imbalance in the brain's neurotransmitters.

Invega is the first new prescription treatment for schizophrenia to be approved by the FDA since 2003.

The mechanism of action of Invega, as with other drugs having efficacy in schizophrenia, is unknown, but it has been proposed that the drug's therapeutic activity in schizophrenia is mediated through a combination of central dopamine and serotonin Type 2 receptor antagonism

The most common side effects that occurred with Invega were restlessness and extrapyramidal disorder (for example, involuntary movements, tremors and muscle stiffness).   Adverse events occurring in at least 1% of patients taking Invega: atrioventricular block first degree, bundle branch block, sinus arrhythmia, tachycardia, palpitations; vision blurred; abdominal pain, dry mouth, dyspepsia, nausea, salivary hypersecretion; asthenia, fatigue, pyrexia, palpitations; blood insulin increased, blood pressure increased, electrocardiogram, QT corrected interval prolonged, electrocardiogram T wave abnormal; back pain, pain in extremity; akathisia, dizziness, dystonia, extrapyramidal disorder, headache, hypertonia, parkinsonism, somnolence, tremor; anxiety; cough, dyspnea; orthostatic hypotension.   Carcinogenicity studies of Invega have not been performed.   Invega must be swallowed whole with the aid of liquids.   Tablets should not be chewed, divided, or crushed.   The medication is contained within a nonabsorbable shell designed to release the drug at a controlled rate.   The tablet shell, along with insoluble core components, is eliminated from the body; patients should not be concerned if they occasionally notice in their stool something that looks like a tablet.

Causes of Schizophrenia

How does Risperdal work?

Mechanism of Action

The most common side effects that may occur with Risperdal in the treatment of schizophrenia: anxiety, sleepiness, restlessness, tremors, muscle stiffness, dizziness, constipation, nausea, indigestion, runny nose, rash and rapid heartbeat.   Adverse events reported by at least 1% of patients treated with Risperdal: insomnia, agitation, anxiety, somnolence, aggressive reaction; extrapyramidal symptoms (includes tremor, dystonia, hypokinesia, hypertonia, hyperkinesia, oculogyric crisis, ataxia, abnormal gait, involuntary muscle contractions, hyporeflexia, akathisia, and extrapyramidal disorders), headache, dizziness; constipation, nausea, dyspepsia, vomiting, abdominal pain; saliva increased, toothache; rhinitis, coughing, sinusitis, pharyngitis, dyspnea; back pain, chest pain, fever; rash, dry skin, seborrhea; upper respiratory infections;abnormal vision; arthralgia; tachycardia.

Understanding Schizophrenia

Today, we know the truth about schizophrenia.   Schizophrenia is a brain "disease."   There are differences, deep within the brain, of some people with schizophrenia.   People who research schizophrenia found this out by taking detailed pictures of the brain.
What still is a mystery is why people get schizophrenia.   Researchers think that genes may play a role in who is more likely to get schizophrenia.   Genes are the "code of life" that determine what a person looks like (physical traits).   Genes may also help determine what kind of personality someone has (personality traits).

How Seroquel Works

Illnesses that affect the brain, such as schizophrenia and mania in bipolar disorder, may be due to certain chemicals in the brain being out of balance.   These imbalances may cause some of the symptoms you may be experiencing.   Doctors and scientists are not sure what causes these imbalances to occur.   Although the exact way that Seroquel works is not known, it is thought to work by regulating the balance of chemicals in the brain.   Although Seroquel is not able to cure your condition, treatment can help manage your symptoms and help you feel better.

The most common side effects are dry mouth, drowsiness, sedation, dizziness, weakness, constipation, abdominal pain, sudden drop in blood pressure when standing, sore throat, weight gain, abnormal liver tests, upset stomach, and lethargy.   Adverse events that occurred in 1% or more of patients treated with Seroquel: headache, pain, asthenia, abdominal pain, back pain, fever; tachycardia; postural hypotension; dry mouth, constipation, vomiting, dyspepsia, gastroenteritis, gamma glutamyl, transpeptidase increased; weight gain, SGPT increased, SGOT increased; agitation, somnolence, dizziness, anxiety; pharyngitis, rhinitis; rash; amblyopia.

Causes of Schizophrenia

Is Schizophrenia Associated With a Chemical Defect in the Brain?

Substances that allow communication between nerve cells in the brain, called neurotransmitters, are thought to be involved in the development of schizophrenia.   The disorder may be associated with an imbalance of the complex chemical systems of the brain, affecting these neurotransmitters.

Is Schizophrenia Caused by a Physical Abnormality in the Brain?

Many studies of people with schizophrenia have found small differences in brain structure, such as an enlargement of the fluid-filled cavities, called the ventricles, in the interior of the brain.   Others have shown a decreased size of certain brain regions or decreased activity in certain brain regions.

Is there a cure for schizophrenia?

Schizophrenia is a lifelong illness.   Although it is not curable, it can be treated.   Many people with schizophrenia are now able to lead more independent and satisfying lives through improved treatment.

How Does Zyprexa Work?

Illnesses that affect the brain, such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, are thought to be caused by certain chemicals in the brain being out of balance.   Although it is not entirely clear how antipsychotic medications work in the body, it is believed that Zyprexa works by adjusting the imbalance of chemicals in the brain that may cause psychotic symptoms.   By doing so, Zyprexa may help restore more normal thinking and mood.

In clinical trials, the most commonly reported side effect of Zyprexa was drowsiness.   Other common effects were weight gain, increased appetite, dry mouth, dizziness, and feelings of weakness.   Adverse events that occurred in 1% or more of patients treated with Zyprexa: accidental injury, asthenia, fever, back pain, chest pain, dental pain and flu syndrome; tachycardia, hypertension, hypotension; dry mouth, constipation, dyspepsia, vomiting, increased appetite, flatulence, increased salivation, thirst; ecchymosis; weight gain, peripheral edema; extremity pain, joint pain, joint stiffness and twitching; somnolence, insomnia, dizziness, abnormal gait, tremor, personality disorder, akathisia, hypertonia, articulation impairment, abnormal dreams, amnesia, delusions, emotional lability, euphoria, manic reaction, paresthesia, and schizophrenic reaction; rhinitis, cough increased, pharyngitis, dyspnea; sweating; amblyopia, conjunctivitis; urinary incontinence, urinary tract infection, vaginitis.

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