Choices in antipsychotic therapy in schizophrenia

Pharmacotherapy for the treatment of schizophrenia now consists, for the most part, of two groups of agents. The conventional antipsychotic agents are exemplified by chlorpromazine and haloperidol, and the atypical agents by clozapine, risperidone, olanzapine, and quetiapine. In this article, the history of the development of these two groups, and their advantages and disadvantages, are reviewed. Effectiveness, side-effect burden, mode of delivery, and cost are discussed. The new practice of "stalled or reversed taper" is described. The clinician now has a wider range of options from which to choose, but many clinical questions remain unanswered.