Guided antipsychotic reduction to reach minimum effective dose (GARMED) in patients with remitted psychosis: a 2-year randomized controlled trial with a naturalistic cohort

What is helpful and unhelpful when people try to withdraw from antipsychotics: An international survey

OBJECTIVE

Antipsychotics remain the first-line treatment for people diagnosed with psychotic disorders despite adverse effects which lead many people to stop their medication. Many stop without the support of the prescriber, who may fear relapse. The objective of this study is to better understand the process of withdrawal from antipsychotics, from the perspective of people taking antipsychotics.

DESIGN

Online survey.

METHODS

An international online survey elicited quantitative responses about pre-withdrawal planning (560) and qualitative responses about what was helpful and unhelpful when withdrawing from antipsychotics (443). Responses came from users of antipsychotics in 29 countries.

RESULTS

Forty-seven per cent did not consult their psychiatrist before discontinuing. Only 40% made preparations, most commonly making a plan, gathering information and informing family. The most frequently reported helpful factors were focussing on the benefits of getting off the drugs (including ending adverse effects and feeling more alive), information about withdrawal symptoms and how to withdraw safely, withdrawing slowly, and support from psychologists, counsellors and psychotherapists. The most common unhelpful factor was the psychiatrist/doctor, largely because of their lack of knowledge, refusal to support the patient's wishes and the threat or use of coercion.

CONCLUSIONS

Evidence-based, respectful, collaborative responses to patients' concerns about adverse effects and desires to withdraw would probably reduce relapse rates and improve long-term outcomes. It would definitely help end pervasive breaching of the principle of informed consent and human rights legislation.

Motivations for and Experiences With Antipsychotic Tapering Among Patients With Schizophrenia Seeking Guided Dose Reduction

OBJECTIVE

Over time, most patients with schizophrenia wish to reduce or discontinue their antipsychotic medication treatment. In Denmark, a specialized government-funded outpatient clinic was established to offer guided antipsychotic dose reduction. This study aimed to provide data on motivations for and previous experiences with antipsychotic tapering among patients attending the clinic.

METHODS

Patients completed an open-ended survey on their motivations for discontinuing or tapering antipsychotic medication and recorded their expectations about these outcomes. They also provided information on previous experiences with discontinuing medication and their level of symptoms, functioning, and side effects.

RESULTS

The survey was completed by 76 (86%) of 88 patients. The main motivations for discontinuing antipsychotics were adverse effects (71%) and uncertainty about the necessity of taking antipsychotics (29%). Other factors included concerns about long-term effects, disagreeing with the diagnosis, experiencing an insufficient effect, and feeling stigmatized by taking medication. Previous experience with discontinuation of antipsychotics was reported by 42 patients, of whom 23 reported relapse as the outcome. Most patients believed they could succeed in dose reduction (N=73 of 75, 97%) or discontinuation (N=62 of 75, 83%).

CONCLUSIONS

Motivational factors reported for professionally guided antipsychotic dose reduction align with previous studies examining patients choosing to discontinue these medications. Despite reports of relapse during prior discontinuation attempts, most patients still reported motivation for and belief in successful dose reduction or discontinuation. An understanding of patients' motivations and beliefs is paramount to an optimal treatment alliance. Offering guided dose reduction may reduce sudden and unsupported discontinuation of antipsychotics.

Deprescribing antipsychotics in patients with schizophrenia: findings from a specialized clinic

BACKGROUND

While antipsychotic medication reduces the risk of relapse for patients with schizophrenia, high prevalence of adverse effects results in low adherence. Lower doses of antipsychotics have been associated with increased level of function but also with increased risk of relapse. This study presents findings from a specialized deprescribing clinic. In addition, we aim to identify clinical predictors for relapse.

METHODS

Patients diagnosed with schizophrenia were referred to the clinic, which offers a six-month guided tapering program. Antipsychotic dose was reduced by 10% every four weeks. Patients were monitored closely for symptom progression or decrease in level of function, with defined cut-offs prompting a pause in or cessation of dose reduction.

RESULTS

After 12 months, the antipsychotic dose was reduced from 404 (±320 mg) to 255 (±236 mg) chlorpromazine equivalent. Of the 88 patients included, 22 (27%) experienced relapse during the six-month tapering period, while 29 (37%) experienced relapse at the 12-month follow-up visit and nine patients were antipsychotic free. Patients who remained stable experienced a slightly increased level of functioning and markedly fewer side effects (p < 0.001). Following relapse, patients were clinically stabilized and showed an improved attitude toward antipsychotic medication. The predictive models were weak.

CONCLUSIONS

We show that most patients undergoing guided antipsychotic tapering remained stable after one year and improved in level of function, while most patients who relapsed were quickly stabilized. Our inability to create strong predictive models could be due to limitations in the study design, warranting future studies exploring tapering of antipsychotics in patients with schizophrenia.

Verification of successful maintenance by serum drug level during a guided antipsychotic reduction to reach minimum effective dose (GARMED) trial

BACKGROUND

Inconsistent results regarding the risk of relapse and better subjective outcomes of previous antipsychotic dose reduction trials in patients with remitted psychosis have not been verified using therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM). This study examined plasma drug concentrations of a dose-tapering trial which exhibited the potential of successful maintenance under lower antipsychotic dosages.

METHODS

A 2-year open-label randomized prospective trial recruited remitted patients to undergo guided antipsychotic tapering. Blood samples were collected at baseline, annually, and after each dose reduction. Plasma aripiprazole/dehydroaripiprazole concentrations were determined using LC-MS/MS. The relationship between the dose and serum drug levels was examined using Spearman's correlation. Divided at 120 ng/mL, relapse rate, global function, quality of life, and psychopathology were compared between high- and low- drug level groups.

RESULTS

A total of 126 blood samples were collected, after excluding13 samples due of non-adherence. The correlation coefficients between dosage and drug level were 0.853 (aripiprazole) and 0.864 (dehydroaripiprazole), and the dose and concentration plots were parallel along the tapering trajectories, except patients with non-adherence. The concentration-to-dose ratio of aripiprazole in this cohort, 17.79 ± 7.23 ng/mL/mg, was higher than that in Caucasian populations. No significant differences were observed in the clinical outcomes between the high- and low-level groups. Remarkably, 12 of 15 patients maintained remission at plasma aripiprazole concentrations of <120 ng/mL.

CONCLUSIONS

The lower-than-expected doses reached in our antipsychotic tapering trial were substantiated to provide adequate prophylactic effects by TDM results in a subset of patients treated with aripiprazole, even considering the differences in pharmacogenomics between ethnicities.

Does relapse cause illness progression in first-episode psychosis? A review

BACKGROUND

It is widely believed that relapse in first-episode psychosis (FEP) causes illness progression, with previous reviews suggesting that treatment non-response develops in one in six patients who relapse. This belief contributes to the primary treatment goal in FEP being relapse-prevention, often in favor of other recovery-oriented goals. However, previous reviews primarily reported on naturalistic studies in chronic schizophrenia and predated multiple major studies with higher-quality designs.

METHODS

We conducted a narrative review of studies of any design that examine the impact of relapse on medication response and other symptomatic and functional outcomes in FEP.

RESULTS

We identified eight relevant studies, five of these published since the last major review on this topic. Observational studies show a clear association between relapses and worse response to medication, but poorly control for confounding. Three higher-quality studies (two randomized) generally do not find worse symptomatic or functional outcomes among medication reduction/discontinuation arms compared to maintenance controls, despite significantly higher initial rates of relapse.

CONCLUSION

While the social and psychological consequences of a relapse should not be dismissed, clinicians should demand high-quality evidence about the risks of relapse on long-term outcomes. The conventional notion that relapse leads to treatment non-response or worse long-term outcomes is generally not supported by the highest quality studies. These findings can help clinicians and patients weigh the risks and benefits of competing treatment strategies in FEP.

Gradually tapering off antipsychotics: lessons for practice from case studies and neurobiological principles

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

There has been an increasing focus on deprescribing in psychiatry recently, particularly of antipsychotic medication, with recognition that not all patients with psychotic disorders require lifelong medication. We summarize some empirical and theoretical papers, and examine case studies to provide instruction on this topic.

RECENT FINDINGS

Recent studies have found that slower tapering (over months or longer) of antipsychotics is associated with a lower relapse rate than quicker tapering (weeks). Case studies presented suggest that the process of reduction is associated with the precipitation or exacerbation of psychotic symptoms and that a slower process of reduction may minimize this effect. This may be because faster reductions cause greater disruption of homeostatic equilibria, provoking psychotic symptoms either as direct withdrawal symptoms or consequences of nonpsychotic withdrawal symptoms (e.g. insomnia) - although not all patients will experience withdrawal symptoms. This suggests that smaller dose reductions, especially at lower doses, made very gradually, may minimize the risk of psychotic symptoms.

SUMMARY

Slower tapering of antipsychotics may provide time for adaptations made to the presence of the medications to resolve, thus reducing the disruption to homeostatic equilibrium caused by dose reduction, potentially reducing the risk of relapse. Exacerbation of psychotic symptoms on antipsychotic reduction may not represent evidence of the need for a higher dose of antipsychotic on a long-term basis but may indicate the need for more gradual reduction. Gradual reduction of antipsychotics, especially after long-term use in clinical practice is prudent.

Clinical experiences of guided tapering of antipsychotics for patients with schizophrenia- a case series

BACKGROUND

80% of patients value information on treatment options as an important part of recovery, further patients with a history of psychotic episodes feel excluded from decision making about their antipsychotic treatment, and on top of that, mental health staff is prone to be reluctant to support shared decision making and medication tapering for patients with schizophrenia. This case series aims to demonstrate the tapering of antipsychotic medication and how guided tapering affects the patient's feeling of autonomy and psychiatric rehabilitation.

CASE PRESENTATION

We present six patients diagnosed with schizophrenia (International Classification of Mental and Behavioral Disorders- 10th Edition codes F20.0-5, F20.7-9) who underwent professionally guided tapering in our clinic. The clinic aims to guide the patients to identify the lowest possible dose of antipsychotic medication in a safe setting to minimise the risk of severe relapse. Two patients completely discontinued their antipsychotic medication, two suffered a relapse during tapering, one chose to stop the tapering at a low dose, and one patient with treatment resistant schizophrenia, which is still tapering down.

CONCLUSIONS

Reducing the antipsychotic dose increased emotional awareness in some patients (n = 4) helping them to develop better strategies to handle stress and increased feelings of recovery. Patients felt a greater sense of autonomy and empowerment during the tapering process, even when discontinuation was not possible. Increased awareness in patients and early intervention during relapse may prevent severe relapse.

IMPACT AND IMPLICATIONS

Some patients with schizophrenia might be over medicated, leading to unwanted side effects and the wish to reduce their medication. The patients in our study illustrate how guided tapering of antipsychotic medication done jointly with the patient can lead to improved emotional awareness and the development of effective symptom management strategies. This may in turn lead to a greater sense of empowerment and identity and give life more meaning, supporting the experience of personal recovery.

Time-dependent effect of antipsychotic discontinuation and dose reduction on social functioning and subjective quality of life-a multilevel meta-analysis

Background

Meta-analyses indicate superiority of antipsychotic maintenance treatment over discontinuation within up to 24 months after treatment initiation for patients with schizophrenia-spectrum disorders. In terms of functional recovery, long-term trials show improved functioning after discontinuation, suggesting a time-dependent effect of antipsychotic maintenance. However, these trials were not included in previous meta-analyses. We therefore investigated whether the effect of antipsychotic maintenance treatment vs. discontinuation on social functioning and quality of life varies by trial length.

Methods

The study was preregistered with PROSPERO (CRD42021248933). PubMed, PsycINFO, Web of Science, Embase and trial registers were systematically searched on 8th November 2021 and updated on 25th June, 2023 and 10th August, 2023 for studies that compared antipsychotic maintenance to discontinuation and reported data on social functioning or subjective quality of life in patients with schizophrenia-spectrum disorders. Risk of bias was assessed with the RoB 2, the ROBINS-I and the RoB-ME tools. Quality of evidence was rated using the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation approach.

Findings

We included k = 35 studies (N = 5924) with follow-ups between one month and 15 years. Overall, maintenance and discontinuation did not differ on social functioning (k = 32; n = 5330; SMD = 0.204; p = 0.65; 95% CI [-0.69, 1.10]) or quality of life (k = 10; n = 943; SMD = -0.004; p = 0.97; 95% CI [-0.22, 0.21]), whilst subgroup analyses of middle- (2-5 years; k = 7; n = 1032; SMD = 0.68; 95% CI [0.06, 1.28]) and long-term follow-ups (>5 years; k = 2; n = 356; SMD = 1.04; 95% CI [0.82, 1.27]) significantly favoured discontinuation. However, the quality of evidence was rated as very low.

Interpretation

Although our findings suggest a time-dependent decrease in the effect of maintenance treatment on social functioning, interpretation of these findings is limited by the serious risk of bias in middle- and long-term trials. Therefore, any conclusions regarding the long-term benefits of antipsychotic treatment or discontinuation for functional recovery are premature and more high-quality trials tailored to comparing state of the art maintenance treatment vs. discontinuation are needed.

Funding

None.