Robert A Lasser, Bryan Dirks, Henry Nasrallah, Courtney Kirsch, Joseph Gao, Michael L Pucci, Mary A Knesevich, Jean-Pierre Lindenmayer
Negative symptoms of schizophrenia (NSS), related to hypodopaminergic activity in the mesocortical pathway and prefrontal cortex, are predictive of poor outcomes and have no effective treatment. Use of dopamine-enhancing drugs (eg, psychostimulants) has been limited by potential adverse effects. This multicenter study examined lisdexamfetamine dimesylate (LDX), a d-amphetamine prodrug, as adjunctive therapy to antipsychotics in adults with clinically stable schizophrenia and predominant NSS. Outpatients with stable schizophrenia, predominant NSS, limited positive symptoms, and maintained on stable atypical antipsychotic therapy underwent a 3-week screening, 10-week open-label adjunctive LDX (20-70 mg/day), and 4-week, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled withdrawal...
October 2013: Neuropsychopharmacology