Paliperidone palmitate 3-month treatment results in symptomatic remission in patients with schizophrenia: a randomized, multicenter, double-blind, and noninferiority study.

The current analysis assessed symptomatic and functional remission achieved following paliperidone palmitate 3-month (PP3M) versus 1-month (PP1M) treatment in patients (age: 18-70 years) with schizophrenia, previously stabilized on PP1M. Following a less than or equal to 3-week screening, and a 17-week, flexible-dosed, open-label phase [PP1M: day 1 (150 mg eq. deltoid), day 8 (100 mg eq. deltoid), weeks 5, 9, and 13 (50, 75, 100, or 150 mg eq., deltoid/gluteal)], clinically-stable patients were randomized (1 : 1) to PP3M (fixed-dose, 175, 263, 350, or 525 mg eq. deltoid/gluteal) or PP1M (fixed-dose, 50, 75, 100, or 150 mg eq. deltoid/gluteal) in 48-week double-blind (DB) phase. Symptomatic remission was assessed using Andreasen's criteria. Functional remission was assessed using Personal and Social Performance scale (PSP). More than 50% patients in both groups achieved symptomatic remission (PP3M: 50.3%; PP1M: 50.8%) during last 6 months of DB phase. Similar percentage of patients of both groups achieved functional remission (defined as PSP score>70, PP3M: 42.5%; PP1M: 43.9%) and combined remission (symptomatic and functional remission, PP3M: 25.1%; PP1M: 26.6%) during last 6 months of DB phase. Most patients who achieved remission at DB baseline maintained their remission status throughout the DB phase. PP3M and PP1M achieved comparable symptomatic and functional remissions during the DB phase.