Risperdal

Risperdal, or risperidone, is the newest medication for treating schizophrenia and psychotic disorders. It helps manage schizophrenia's "positive symptoms" such as visual and auditory hallucinations, delusions, and thought disturbances. Risperdal may also help in treating so-called "negative symptoms" such as social withdrawal, apathy, lack of motivation, and inability to experience pleasure. Side effects are usually relatively minor, and blood monitoring is not necessary. Risperdal is the first new front-line treatment option in twenty years.
How is Risperdal different from other antipsychotic medications?
Conventional antipsychotics such as Haldol, Stelazine, and Prolixin have treated positive symptoms in many patients for several years. However, they do not satisfactorily affect the negative symptoms, and they often cause uncomfortable or intolerable side effects. Risperdal is as effective as the conventional medications in treating positive symptoms. It also offers the advantages of helping to treat some of the negative symptoms somewhat and causing fewer extrapyramidal side effects (EPS) such as restlessness, muscle rigidity, and tremor when taken at the manufacturer's recommended dose of 6 mg per day.
Why Risperdal is called a new "front-line option?" It means that Risperdal could be the first medication prescribed for a person who is newly diagnosed with a psychotic disorder. Some medications, such as clozapine, have side effects that may be inconvenient or difficult to manage. Such medications may be reserved until after other medications have been tried unsuccessfully. Because Risperdal is effective and has relatively few side effects, doctors may consider it one of the first medications to try for patients with schizophrenia. It's important to remember that no medication will work for everyone, and some patients will have greater success with Risperdal than others.
Risperdal, like other new antipsychotic drugs currently under development, is designed