Drug and psychosocial therapy in schizophrenia: current status and research needs.

The author assesses the current status of research on psychopharmacological and psychosocial interventions with schizophrenic patients. Among the issues discussed are the needs to validate the diagnosis of schizoprenia; to reduce sample heterogeneity by defining subgroups based on meaningful response to drug treatment, long-term course, family history, neurologic soft signs, etc.; to characterize the subgroup of patients who do not respond to or do not require neuroleptic treatment; to determine the prevalence of tardive dyskinesia on a national and regional basis; to use blood levels of neuroleptic drugs as indices of whether individual patients are receiving adequate dosages; to investigate further the question of drug compliance and optimal duration of maintenance therapy; and finally to demonstrate how drug treatment and social skills training interact with each other.