Second-Generation Parenteral Antipsychotic (Olanzapine) as a First-Line Treatment for Acute Undifferentiated Agitation in the Emergency Department in Comparison With Haloperidol.

Background Acutely agitated patients are common in the emergency department (ED). Given the myriad aetiologies of the clinical conditions that can produce agitation, such a high prevalence is unsurprising. Agitation is a symptomatic presentation, not a diagnosis, secondary to a psychiatric, medical, traumatic, or toxicological condition.