Publication:
Clinical and treatment predictors of relapse during a three-year follow-up of a cohort of first episodes of schizophrenia.

Loading...
Thumbnail Image

Date

2022-02-17

Authors

Bioque, Miquel
Mezquida, Gisela
Amoretti, Sílvia
Garcia-Rizo, Clemente
Lopez-Ilundain, Jose M
Diaz-Caneja, Covadonga M
Zorrilla, Iñaki
Mane, Anna
Rodriguez-Jimenez, Roberto
Corripio, Iluminada

Advisors

Journal Title

Journal ISSN

Volume Title

Publisher

Elsevier
Metrics
Google Scholar
Export

Research Projects

Organizational Units

Journal Issue

Abstract

Relapses are frequent in the first years following a first episode of schizophrenia (FES), being associated with a higher risk of developing a chronic psychotic disorder, and poor clinical and functional outcomes. The identification and intervention over factors associated with relapses in these early phases are timely and relevant. In this study, 119 patients in remission after a FES were closely followed over three years. Participants came from the 2EPS Project, a coordinated, naturalistic, longitudinal study of 15 tertiary centers in Spain. Sociodemographic, clinical, treatment and substance abuse data were analyzed. 49.6% of the participants relapsed during the 3-years follow-up. None of the baseline demographic and clinical characteristics analyzed showed a statistically significant association with relapses. 22% of patients that finished the follow-up without relapsing were not taking any antipsychotic. The group that relapsed presented higher mean antipsychotics doses (381.93 vs. 242.29 mg of chlorpromazine equivalent/day, p = 0.028) and higher rates of antipsychotic polytherapy (28.6% vs. 13%, p  < 0.001), benzodiazepines use (30.8% vs. 8.5%, p < 0.001), side effects reports (39.2% vs. 25%, p = 0.022), psychological treatment (51.8% vs. 33.9%, p = 0.03), and cannabis consumption (93.2% vs. 56.7%, p < 0.001). Clozapine use was notably higher in the group that reminded in remission (21.7% vs. 8.2%, p < 0.019). These findings may guide clinicians to detect subgroups of patients with higher risk to present a second episode of psychosis, focusing on measures to ensure an adequate treatment or facilitating cannabis use cessation. This study supports future research to identify relapse prevention strategies for patients in early phases of schizophrenia.

Description

MeSH Terms

Antipsychotic agents
Follow-up studies
Humans
Longitudinal studies
Psychotic disorders
Recurrence
Schizophrenia

DeCS Terms

Antipsicóticos
Esquizofrenia
Estudios longitudinales
Estudios de seguimiento
Recurrencia
Trastornos psicóticos

CIE Terms

Keywords

Antipsychotics, Cannabis, First-episode psychosis, Relapses, Schizophrenia, Second episodes

Citation

Bioque M, Mezquida G, Amoretti S, García-Rizo C, López-Ilundain JM, Diaz-Caneja CM, et al. Clinical and treatment predictors of relapse during a three-year follow-up of a cohort of first episodes of schizophrenia. Schizophr Res. 2022 May;243:32-42