Pharmacological Treatment of Schizophrenia: Japanese Expert Consensus.

Introduction: Conventional treatment guidelines of schizophrenia do not necessarily provide solutions on clinically important issues.

Methods: A total of 141 certified psychiatrists of the Japanese Society of Clinical Neuropsychopharmacology evaluated treatment options regarding 19 clinically relevant situations in the treatment of schizophrenia with a 9-point scale (1="disagree" and 9="agree").

Results: First-line antipsychotics varied depending on predominant symptoms: risperidone (mean±standard deviation score, 7.

Pharmacological management of bipolar disorder: Japanese expert consensus.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to develop a consensus guideline by certified experts of the Japanese Society of Clinical Neuropsychopharmacology on the psychopharmacological treatment for bipolar disorders I and II (BP-I and BP-II), in order to fill the gap in the literature and provide more concrete guidance for challenging and controversial real-world situations.

Methods: Experts were asked to assess treatment options regarding 19 clinical situations of bipolar disorder with a nine-point Likert scale (one = "disagree" and nine = "agree"). According to the responses from 119 experts, the options were categorized into the first-, second-, and third-line treatments.

Pharmacological management of depression: Japanese expert consensus.

Background: Clinically relevant issues in the real-world treatment of depression have not always been captured by conventional treatment guidelines.

Methods: Certified psychiatrists of the Japanese Society of Clinical Neuropsychopharmacology were asked to evaluate treatment options regarding 23 clinical situations in the treatment of depression using a 9-point Likert scale (1="disagree" and 9="agree"). According to the responses of 114 experts, the options were categorized into first-, second-, and third-line treatments.

Relationship between Clozapine-Induced Electroencephalogram Abnormalities and Serum Concentration of Clozapine in Japanese Patients with Treatment-Resistant Schizophrenia.

Objective: The objective of this study was to investigate the relationship between the serum concentration of clozapine (C-CLZ), Ndesmethylclozapine (N-CLZ) and the daily dose of CLZ (D-CLZ), and the relationships among CLZ and electroencephalogram (EEG) abnormalities.

Methods: Twenty-eight patients were recruited to this study, but 8 patients were excluded because clozapine was discontinued before the post-treatment measurement of EEG or C-CLZ. Ultimately, 20 patients (6 men, 14 women) with an average age of 36 years were enrolled.

Aripiprazole for the treatment of psychotic symptoms in patients with dementia with Lewy bodies: a case series.

Purpose: The core features of dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) are cognitive fluctuations, visual hallucinations, and parkinsonian symptoms. Although there have been several reports on the efficacy of treatments for psychotic symptoms in patients with DLB, little is known regarding the treatment effects of aripiprazole. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of aripiprazole for the treatment of psychotic symptoms in patients with DLB.

Quantification of the steady-state plasma concentrations of clozapine and N-desmethylclozapine in Japanese patients with schizophrenia using a novel HPLC method and the effects of CYPs and ABC transporters polymorphisms.

Background This study developed a novel high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method for the simultaneous quantification of clozapine and its active metabolite, N-desmethylclozapine, in human plasma and investigated the effects of various factors, including genetic polymorphisms in cytochrome P450 (CYP) 2D6, CYP3A5, ABCB1 and ABCG2, on the steady-state plasma trough concentrations (C) of clozapine and N-desmethylclozapine in Japanese patients with schizophrenia. Methods Forty-five patients had been receiving fixed doses of clozapine for at least four weeks. The CYP2D6 ( CYP2D6*2, CYP2D6*5, CYP2D6*10), CYP3A5 ( CYP3A5*3), ABCB1 (1236C > T, 2677G > T/A, 3435C > T) and ABCG2 (421 C > A) genotypes were identified by polymerase chain reaction.

Clozapine-induced seizures, electroencephalography abnormalities, and clinical responses in Japanese patients with schizophrenia.

Purpose: We describe electroencephalography (EEG) abnormalities and seizures associated with clozapine treatment in Japanese patients with schizophrenia and retrospectively compare EEG results and total Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS [T]) scores before and after treatment.

Methods: Twenty-six patients with treatment-resistant schizophrenia were enrolled in this study. EEG measurements were obtained prior to clozapine treatment and every 4 weeks thereafter.