Clinical observations of the treatment of tardive dyskinesia with haloperidol

In the present study, after briefly describing the clinical characteristics of the neurologic syndromes provoked by the neuroleptic drugs and most particularly of the syndrome of tardive dyskinesia, we refer to the incidence of this latter syndrome and to the results obtained with the administration of haloperidol for a period of 16 weeks in 10 patients suffering from it. From the detailed analysis of 300 chronic schizophrenic patients, we detected this complication in 10 cases, which gives an incidence of 3,3%. With the administration of haloperidol, on the other hand, we obtained an excellent reduction of both the frequency and the intensity of the peristomal movements in nearly all the patients. This reduction was more remarkable in 2 of the patients who had manifested certain complications of the syndrome, mainly a difficulty in swallowing, followed by a considerable loss of weight in the one patient and by an intense perplexity and a tendency towards suicide in the other. The continued suppression of the above dyskinetic phenomena during the whole period of the trial allows us to conclude that haloperidal may be recommended for the maintenance treatment of the syndrome of tardive dyskinesia.