Very Low-Dose Risperidone in First-Episode Psychosis: A Safe and Effective Way to Initiate Treatment
Table 2
Psychopathology and clinical improvement measures at baseline, week 4 (end of Phase I) and week 8 (end of Phase II).
Measure, mean (SD)
Total sample
Fast responders *
Slow responders *
BPRS total
Baseline
54.8 (9.2)
55.1 (9.5)
54.4 (8.9)
Week 4
41.4 (9.8)a
35.9 (5.0)a
49.2 (9.6)a
Week 8†
39.1 (9.3)b,c
35.7 (6.9)c
43.9 (10.3)b,c
BPRS psychotic subscale
Baseline
14.6 (2.9)
14.3 (2.9)
15.0 (2.8)
Week 4
9.9 (4.0)a
7.3 (1.4)a
13.7 (3.4)
Week 8†
8.6 (3.5)b,c
7.4 (2.6)c
10.4 (3.9)b,c
BPRS negative symptoms subscale
Baseline
6.3 (2.2)
6.1 (2.2)
6.6 (2.1)
Week 4
5.7 (1.7)a
5.3 (1.4)
6.2 (2.0)
Week 8†
5.7 (1.7)c
5.1 (1.2)c
6.5 (1.9)
CGI-S
Baseline
4.5 (0.7)
4.5 (0.8)
4.5 (0.7)
Week 4
3.2 (1.1)a
2.5 (0.6)a
4.2 (0.8)a
Week 8†
2.8 (1.1)b,c
2.5 (1.0)c
3.3 (1.1)b,c
QLS
Baseline
58.8 (20.1)
57.9 (20.9)
60.0 (19.3)
Week 4
68.3 (19.1)a
75.1 (18.0)a
58.5 (16.3)
Week 8†
67.9 (20.8)c
74.8 (20.0)c
58.1 (18.1)
*Responder status determined after 4 weeks of risperidone at a dose of 2 mg/day. †Week 8 scores are on an LOCF basis for all measures.
aSignificant change from baseline to week 4, .
bSignificant change from week 4 to week 8, .
cSignificant change from baseline to week 8, . BPRS: the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale, CGI-S: Clinical Global Impression Severity Scale, QLS: Quality of Life Scale.