High- and low-potency neuroleptics in elderly psychiatric patients
M. H. Branchey, J. H. Lee, R. Amin and G. M. Simpson
The efficacy and side effects of a low-potency neuroleptic, thioridazine
hydrochloride, and those of a high-potency neuroleptic, fluphenazine
hydrochloride, were compared in 30 elderly chronic schizophrenic patients.
Through a crossover design, each patient received both drugs with an
intervening washout period. Although both drugs produced a similar degree
of improvement, their side effects differed. Fluphenazine caused slightly
more extrapyramidal effects than thioridazine, though few occurred with use
of either drug. Thioridazine caused weight gain, blood pressure decreases,
and ECG changes. High-potency neuroleptic agents appear to be the drugs of
choice for elderly schizophrenic patients.
