BJP CPD Online e-learning site
HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS
Psychiatric Bulletin Advances in Psychiatric Treatment All RCPsych Journals
QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced]


     

The British Journal of Psychiatry (1967) 113: 1353-1359. doi: 10.1192/bjp.113.505.1353
© 1967 The Royal College of Psychiatrists
This Article
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow Submit an eLetter
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me when eLetters are posted
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via CrossRef
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by PRITCHARD, M.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by PRITCHARD, M.

Prognosis of Schizophrenia Before and After Pharmacotherapy: II. Three-Year Follow-up

MICHAEL PRITCHARD M.B., M.R.C.P., D.P.M.1

1 Senior Lecturer and Assistant Director to the Department of Psychiatry, The London Hospital Medical College, London, E.1

In this second part of a two-part study two groups of 50 schizophrenic patients, Group A and Group B, admitted respectively before (1952/53) and after (1956/57) the introduction into treatment of reserpine and the phenothiazines have been compared with regard to readmission during the three-year period following discharge from hospital. Information was obtained by a postal follow-up on 41 patients in Group A and 47 patients in Group B.

Although the short-term outcome of Group B had been shown, in the first part of this study, to be better than that of Group A, the longer term prognosis in terms of readmission rate and mean duration of stay in hospital was similar for the two groups. This was in spite of an apparent relationship between condition on discharge from the original admission and the long-term prognosis. The duration of stay of patients who were readmitted was, however, as expected, shorter in Group B than Group A.

It is concluded that the introduction of pharmacotherapy, although producing an improvement in short-term outcome, has had no effect on the longer term prognosis in this group of patients. It is possible, however, that continued use of drugs after discharge, in the form of maintenance therapy, might have lessened the readmission rate.

A history of a previous admission to hospital for schizophrenia appears to have increased the risk of readmission and length of stay of admitted patients in both groups, while unmarried status increased the length of stay, but not the admission rate.

A diagnosis of the paranoid type of schizophrenia is associated in Group A with a worse prognosis than a diagnosis of schizophrenia n.o.s., while there is no difference in this respect in Group B. Since this reflects the improved short-term prognosis in paranoid schizophrenia shown in the first part of the study, this may, in this instance, indicate a more long-term effect of the treatment given in the original admission.

Submitted on November 23, 1966




This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
 Schizophr BullHome page
J. R Bola
Medication-Free Research in Early Episode Schizophrenia: Evidence of Long-Term Harm?
Schizophr Bull, April 1, 2006; 32(2): 288 - 296.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS
Psychiatric Bulletin Advances in Psychiatric Treatment All RCPsych Journals
Copyright © 1967 The Royal College of Psychiatrists.