[Activity of a new neuroleptic, penfluridol (R-16341) in long-term treatments]

The difficulties of regular drug intake in long term treatments for psychotic patients gave rise to the need of using medicines at the longest possible intervals, facilitating thus adequate control and regularity. Penfluridol is a neuroleptic meeting that requirement: it is necessary only one dose per week. This paper reviews the results of Penfluridol in 26 patients (20 inpatients and 6 outpatients), ages between 17 and 54 with a mean of 36.8, sex feminine, and the following diagnoses: schizophrenia, paranoid: 14, simple: 8, hebephrenic: 3, catatonic: 1. The patients, divided in two groups of 13 each, had one oral dose a week, of between 10 and 100 mg, during 90 days. The first group took only Penfluridol, suppressing any other medicaments. The other group added Penfluridol to the prescriptions already in use. The results, as described in tables I and II, were evaluated according to 36 items. The general evaluation was positive with no negative biases. The side effects were scarce and temporary: insomnia in 7 cases during the first week, and extra-pyramidal symptoms in another 7 cases, that were controlled with antiparkinsonians. The conclusion is that Penfluridol is a valuable contribution to longterm treatments in psychoses.