Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Dr Julia LAPPIN
Senior Lecturer
School of Psychiatry
UNSW Medicine
Treatment of psychosis: Outline
Early Intervention and the Recovery Model
Pharmacological Treatments
Treatment at First Episode Psychosis
Treatment Following FEP
Psychosocial Interventions
Physical Healthcare
International Guidelines
Early Intervention and
the Recovery Model
Psychosis: a public health problem
Low incidence but relatively high prevalence
Significant disability both clinically and functionally
Most common disorder in public mental health
services:
32% community contacts
61% residential episodes
21% hospital separations
$77,00AUD annual average cost per person with
psychosis (2010)
Health Outcomes in Psychosis
Course of symptoms varies widely
Associated disability across clinical and functional domains
AESOP‐10 (Morgan et al, 2014) found only 14% of individuals
will recover on both symptom and functional outcome
Disability begins even before first episode
Need to intervene early to minimize associated disability
Early Intervention
Recovery Model: realistic optimism
Young people with FEP going through important
stage in personal and social development
Delays to treatment associated with poorer outcome
Remove barriers to delays in treatment:
Early detection – educate community, GP’s, ED teams
Engage in collaborative non‐stigmatising care
Minimize time from referral to assessment
Bondi Junction; ORYGEN (Melbourne)
EI for First Episode Psychosis
Early Intervention services specialized in that
work with specific age (varies; 12‐26 years in Australia)
limited time frame (first 2 years post FEP)
tailored set of interventions
Symptom control & relief
Psycho‐education
Relapse prevention
Recovery Model
Focus on youth and developmental needs
Holistic interventions
Pharmacological
Psychosocial
Psycho‐education
Personal support
Support for family
Collaborative approach with range of other agencies
Case management
Clear diagnosis not always possible: use term PSYCHOSIS
Ultra High Risk for Psychosis
Most people who develop psychosis first undergo
prodromal symptoms
Attempts have been made to predict those people at UHR
Meet criteria for one or more of the following groups:
Attenuated psychotic symptoms: sub‐threshold positive
symptoms in past year
BLIP (brief limited intermittent psychotic symptoms): frank
psychotic symptoms that lasted no longer than a week and
spontaneously abated
Trait and state risk factor group: patients have schizotypal
personality disorder or a first‐degree relative with a psychotic
disorder AND have experienced a significant decrease in
functioning during the previous year
Treatment of UHR
Controversial
Regular Monitoring
Mainstay of treatment: CBT
Some evidence of preventative effect of fish oils
AP use delayed until make a transition to psychosis
(20‐35%)
UHR teams are rare and often have strong research
component
Pharmacological Treatments
Pharmacological treatments
Antipsychotic medications
Efficacy
Side effects
First episode psychosis
Acute episode
Maintenance treatment
Treatment resistance
Polypharmacy
Antipsychotic Treatments
Dopamine D2 blockade most common
Notable exception: clozapine
All AP’s have side effects
Tailor to the individual
Involve individual (and carers) in choice of AP
Regular monitoring of
Response
Adherence
Side effects
Traditional separation into first‐generation and second‐
generation now out‐dated
Antipsychotic Treatments
Leucht et al (2013): multiple‐treatments meta‐analysis:
suggests consider instead 7 domains:
Efficacy
All‐cause discontinuation
Weight gain
Extra‐pyramidal side effects
Sedation
QTc prolongation
Prolactin
Side effect monitoring
Ask the patient!
Sedation,
Amenorrhea…
Consider dose reduction if stop smoking
Regular weights, BMI and waist circumference
ECG prior to and after AP initiation
Hypotension and impaired temperature regulation:
regular pulse, blood pressure & temperature checks
Treating Side Effects
Extra Pyramidal Side Effects (EPSE):
Parkinsonian symptoms
Dystonia
Akathisia
Give anti‐muscarinic or reduce dose
Tardive dyskinesia: stop treatment
Neuroleptic Malignant Syndrome
hyperthermia; fluctuating consciousness; tachycardia;
muscle rigidity
Emergency ! Stop treatment!
Seek medical treatment (bromocriptine; dantrolene)
Treatment at First
Episode Psychosis
Treatment of first episode psychosis
Antipsychotic (AP) as first line
NOT clozapine or olanzapine
Increased sensitivity to adverse effects
START LOW, GO SLOW
lower half of recommended dosage range for multi‐episode
patients
Most FEP (80%) respond promptly
Largest single contributor to relapse is ?????????
Treatment of first episode psychosis
Antipsychotic (AP) as first line
NOT clozapine or olanzapine
Increased sensitivity to adverse effects
START LOW, GO SLOW
lower half of recommended dosage range for multi‐episode
patients
Most FEP (80%) respond promptly
Largest single contributor to relapse is DISCONTINUATION
Treatment following FEP
How long is enough after FEP?
Unclear whether all FEP clients should be on maintenance
long‐term after recovery from FEP
Typical advice is to remain on treatment for 12‐24 months
No definitive trial data
Gradual reduction of dose while monitoring for
signs/symptoms of relapse
Some evidence early‐course reduction/discontinuation is
associated with better rate of recovery compared to
maintenance therapy (Wunderink, 2013)
Treatment of Further Acute Episodes
Antipsychotic, other than clozapine, as first line
Reduces positive psychotic symptoms
choice of AP on basis of:
individual preference
prior treatment response
side effect experience
adherence history
relevant medical history/ risk factors
other medication side effect profile
long‐term treatment planning
Acute Episode: Daily Dosage
Range of treatment, tailored to side effects, e.g.
amisulpride: 400‐800 mg
aripiprazole: 10–30 mg
quetiapine: 300–750 mg
risperidone: 2–8 mg
haloperidol: 3‐15 mg
olanzapine: 10–20 mg
Trials should be at least 2 weeks, with an upper limit
of 6 weeks to observe optimal response
Maintenance
Continue AP to maintain symptom relief and to reduce risk
of relapse/ worsening of positive symptoms
Lower dose required eg
amisulpride: 400‐600 mg
aripiprazole: 10–20 mg
quetiapine: 300–600 mg
risperidone: 2–6 mg
haloperidol: 3‐10 mg
olanzapine: 10–15 mg
Long‐acting injectable (LAI) / “depot” AP should be offered
as an alternative to oral when the LAI is preferred to oral
Treatment resistance (TR)
Continued positive symptoms despite 2 adequate trials
of AP
Adequate trial: 4‐6 weeks at therapeutic dose
Associated with severe clinical and functional disability
Recent evidence indicates 5 in 6 cases of TR are present
from time of first episode psychosis
Management of Treatment
Resistance
Offer clozapine: proven effectiveness in TR
Slow initiation: clozapine titration
Regular monitoring for side effects
Hypotension (risk of collapse)
Neutropenia and potentially fatal agranulocytosis
Myocarditis or cardiomyopathy
Gastro intestinal obstruction
Trial: dosage 300 to 800 mg/day for 8 weeks
Polypharmacy
Not recommended in guidelines
Common (bad!) practice which is off‐licence
Associated with increased mortality (Weinmann, 2009)
Refer to specialist psychiatrist
Psychosocial Interventions
Psychosocial Interventions
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy
Family Interventions
Rehabilitation
Vocational support
Other
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy
Proven role as an adjunct to antipsychotic medication
Positive symptoms, depression, and overall symptoms
But recent meta‐analysis suggests size of effect (Jauhar
et al, 2014) is small
Can be incorporated into training of mental health
professionals
International treatment guidelines recommend
NICE: at first episode, and for all people with schizophrenia
APA: in stable schizophrenia
CBT techniques
Tailored to problems identified collaboratively with
individual
Development of trust
Normalizing
Coping strategy enhancement
Reality testing
Work with dysfunctional affective and behavioural
reactions to psychotic symptoms
Family Intervention
More frequent relapses in people with psychosis
whose families express high levels of criticism,
hostility, or over involvement
Education about illness (psycho‐education)
Behavioural modification
May occur with or without affected individual
Variety of techniques
motivational interviewing
relaxation training
role‐play
FI: Aims
To improve family atmosphere and reduce relapse through
Education about illness
Alliance‐forging with relatives
Reduction of stress and burden on relatives
Enabling relatives to anticipate and solve problems
Reduction of expression of anger and guilt by the family
Agreeing reasonable expectations for patient performance
Encouraging boundary‐setting whilst maintaining some separation
Achieving desirable change in relatives’ behaviour & belief systems
FI: evidence base
Cochrane review (Pharoah, 2012)
Patients with schizophrenia: standard care vs FI (≥ 5 sessions)
53 RCT’s included internationally
Reduced hospital admission at one year (NNT=8)
Reduced relapse at one year (NNT=7)
Improved compliance with medication (NNT=6)
Improved general social functioning
Reduced burden on family
Reduced high expressed emotion
Benefits likely greatest in centres where research conducted
Other psychosocial interventions
Applicable over range of settings
inpatient; day hospital; community‐based
Assistance with Activities of Daily Living (ADL)
Vocational
Supported employment
College/university
Unpaid/voluntary work
Befriending
Social Skills
Cognitive Remediation
Physical Healthcare
The scandal of premature death
Mental illness linked with reduced lifespan:
20‐year mortality gap for men
15 years for women (Wahlbeck, 2011)
Poorer access to physical healthcare than the general
population
Premature Mortality: causes
Higher rates of risk factors for chronic (particularly
cardiovascular) disease, eg
smoking
alcohol
substance use/misuse
Adverse effects of psychiatric medication
weight gain
impaired glucose control
ECG abnormalities
Higher rates of suicide, accidental, and violent death
Physical healthcare management
Need to address problems early:
screening of physical health morbidity
engagement with routine public health population screening
monitoring and managing physical health
Monitoring of side effects/CVS risk factors
Lifestyle interventions/health promotion
dietary advice
exercise
smoking reduction
Don’t just SCREEN
→
INTERVENE
for all patients in
the RED ZONE
Other interventions
Smoking Cessation
Nicotine replacement patches
Varenicline or buproprion
accompanied by smoking cessation education/support group
Comorbid alcohol or substance use
motivational enhancement
behavioural strategies that focus on engagement in treatment,
coping skills training, relapse prevention training
International Guidelines
International Guidelines for
Treatment
Antipsychotic is first line treatment
Antipsychotics for maintenance
Clozapine for treatment refractory illness
Recommendations against polypharmacy of antipsychotics
Take AP for at least 4 weeks
4 or more contacts with psychiatrists or GP over past 12/12
Psycho‐education for all
CBT for those with persistent symptoms (6‐16 sessions)
FI for those with family contact (4‐14 sessions)
How are we doing in Australia?
Diminic et al (2014)
Conducted audit of application of guidelines in SHIP
sample of psychosis subjects
92% on an AP
28% polypharmacy
21% have had CBT
11% have had FI
From: Diminic et al (2014)
Need to improve
adherence to
pharmacological
guidelines
Huge gap between
guideline
recommendations
& service delivery