| Note |
If you've always thought serenace as a potent, low dose psychotropic, we'd like you to think again. Serenace dosage - a new profile. For many years serenace has been recognized as an effective neuroleptic when used in relatively low doses. However, recent evidence suggests that when higher doses (30-200mg or more daily) are eomployed, serenace can provide control in a greater number of patients. Patients refractory to lower doses, or 'failures' on other agents may especially benefit from re-evaluation on high dose serenace. Serenace may convert inpatients to outpatients. Current medical opinion has endorsed the use of high dose antipsychotic therapy. "A sizeable number of chronic schizophrenics do not benefit substantially from usual doses of neuroleptics." "Consequently, many therapists have begun to use high dose or meganeuroleptic therapy for chornic schizophrenics who without such treatment would be prisoners of psychosis indefinitely." High dose serenace may play an important role in permitting outpatient management for previously hospitalized patients. High dose serenace increases efficacy - not side-effect. In contrast with many other major tranquillizers, high dosage serenace does not appear to cause marked increase in side-effects, especially extrapyramidal reactions. "Those experiences with high dose haloperidol testify that it is remarkably safe and that it does not cause a significantly higher incidence of extrapryramidal reactions than low dose therapy." Ayd, F.J.Jr. :Dis. Nerv.Syst., 33:459, 1972 further information available from Searle. |
