Active clinical trials for "Schizophrenia"

The purpose of the study is to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of different doses of risperidone (an antipsychotic medication) compared with placebo and with a fixed 20 mg/day dose of a standard antipsychotic, haloperidol, in patients with chronic schizophrenia.

Schizophrenia is a brain disease. The primary features of schizophrenia are characterized by Positive symptoms (symptoms that should not be there, inability to think clearly, to distinguish reality from fantasy i.e., hearing voices) and Negative symptoms (a reduction or absence of normal behaviors or emotions, i.e., unable to manage emotions, make decisions and relate to others). Other symptoms include reduced ability to recall and learn new information, difficulty with problem solving, or maintaining productive employment. The symptoms of schizophrenia may be due to an imbalance in chemicals in the brain, primarily dopamine and serotonin, which enables brain cells to communicate with each other. The clinical development of asenapine, as described in the 2007 IDB appears to have antipsychotic activity with superior symptomatic control compared to placebo and an improved safety profile compared to currently available neuroleptics. Its fast dissolving formulation may further add to treatment compliance. While various titration schedules have been used in previous studies, dose increases at 5 mg BID up to 10 mg BID have been well tolerated. Therefore, further exploration in a larger group of subjects with acute exacerbation of schizophrenia using an asenapine flexible dosing design ( 5 or 10 mg BID) will mimic actual clinical practice in a long-term 52-week extension trial.

After one year neuroleptic maintenance treatment in patients with first episode schizophrenia, neuroleptic treatment will be continued vs. stepwise discontinued (randomized design) over a period of 1 year. Under both conditions prodrome based early intervention take place.

This study will determine the effectiveness of a group-based behavioral program for weight reduction in overweight and obese schizophrenia patients.

The aim of this study is to evaluate the therapeutic effect of escitalopram in the treatment of negative symptoms in schizophrenia patients in a double-blind placebo-controlled study.

This study is to determine the efficacy (how well the drug works), safety, and side effects of the study medication compared to placebo in the treatment of the negative symptoms of schizophrenia in adults.

This study will use single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) to study brain nicotine receptors (proteins on the surface of brain cells) in healthy subjects and in patients with schizophrenia. Autopsy findings in patients with schizophrenia show changes in their nicotine receptors. This study will use SPECT to look at these receptors in living schizophrenia patients and compare them with those in healthy subjects. The following individuals between 21 and 50 years of age (or between 21 and 80 years of age for Group 1 only) are eligible for this study: healthy non-smokers (Group 1); schizophrenia patients who smoke (Group 2); schizophrenia patients who do not smoke (Group 3); healthy smokers (Group 4); healthy non-smokers (Group 5). Patients with schizophrenia must be taking olanzapine (Zyprexa) or risperidone (Risperdal) for at least 6 months. All candidates will be screened at the first visit. Group 1 participants will have three more visits; Groups 2 through 5 will have two more visits. Visit 1 All participants will be screened with physical and neurological examinations; blood and urine tests; and neuropsychological tests to assess their ability to learn and remember words and numbers, to pay attention, and to quickly perform motor tasks, such as putting pegs into a piece of wood. In addition, they will have an eye movement test and event-related potential testing. For the eye test, the subject sits in a chair and leans forward with the chin on a chin rest. A band is tied around the head and very small amounts of invisible (infrared) light are shined into the eyes. The light is reflected back and measured. Wire electrodes are placed around the area of the eye and cheek to monitor eye blinks and eye movements. Subjects are asked to follow a light with their eyes and to look away from a light. For event- related potential testing, electrodes are placed on the scalp, forehead and cheeks, and brain activity is recorded while the subject identifies particular pictures and sounds. Visit 2 (and Visit 3 for Group 1) Participants will have a SPECT scan. On the night before the scan, the day of the scan, and for 4 days after the scan, subject take an oral dose of potassium iodide to protect the thyroid gland from the radioactive tracer used in the SPECT procedure. (Individuals allergic to potassium iodide will take potassium perchlorate instead.) For the SPECT scan, small radioactive markers containing 99mTc are glued to the subject's head. Two catheters (thin, flexible tubes) are placed in veins in the arms to inject the radioactive tracer [123I]5-I-A-85380 and to draw blood samples. During the scan, the subject lies on a bed with his or her head held still with a headholder. The scans are taken over a 9-hour period after injection of the tracer injection. An electrocardiogram, respiration, and blood pressure measures are taken before injection of [123I]5-I-A-85380, then 5 minutes after the injection, and again 30 to 60 minutes after the injection. Breath samples are collected every 60 minutes. Blood and urine samples are collected 5 to 6 hours after starting the scan. Group 1 subjects will have a second SPECT scan within 4 weeks of the first. Visit 3 (Visit 4 for Group 1) Participants will have a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan. For this procedure, the subject lies on a table that slides into a narrow metal cylinder with a strong magnetic field for the scan. The scanner uses a magnetic field and radio waves to produce images that show structural and chemical changes in tissues. The test lasts up to 1 hour.

To assess the long-term efficacy of oral Ziprasidone in the maintenance treatment of resistant schizophrenic subjects who have benefited from participation in the phase III ziprasidone study A1281039 (MOZART study), to assess the efficacy of ziprasidone in the relapse prevention of schizophrenia, to collect long-term data on safety and tolerability of oral Ziprasidone

Schizophrenia is a brain disease. The primary features of schizophrenia are characterized by Positive symptoms (symptoms that should not be there, inability to think clearly, to distinguish reality from fantasy i.e., hearing voices) and Negative symptoms (a reduction or absence of normal behaviors or emotions, i.e., unable to manage emotions, make decisions and relate to others). Other symptoms include reduced ability to recall and learn new information, difficulty with problem solving, or maintaining productive employment. The symptoms of schizophrenia may be due to an imbalance in chemicals in the brain, primarily dopamine and serotonin, which enables brain cells to communicate with each other. Asenapine is an investigational drug that may help to correct the imbalance in dopamine and serotonin. This is a 6 week study to test the efficacy and safety of asenapine and a comparator agent (olanzapine) in the treatment of patients with schizophrenia. Patients that complete this trial will have the option of continuing in an additional one year extension trial.

Schizophrenia is a brain disease. The condition may be associated with acute psychotic episodes and long-term disability despite remission from the acute symptoms. Current management of schizophrenia focuses on the treatment of acute symptoms as well as long-term treatment aimed at preventing relapse after patients have experienced an improvement in acute symptoms. Patients who discontinue treatment have a high likelihood of experiencing relapse within 1-2 years after an acute episode of schizophrenia. Patients who remain on antipsychotic treatment have lower rates of relapse and have milder courses of exacerbation when relapse occurs.The symptoms of schizophrenia may be due to an imbalance in chemicals in the brain, primarily dopamine and serotonin, which enables brain cells to communicate with each other. Asenapine may help to correct the imbalance in dopamine and serotonin. The purpose of this clinical trial is to evaluate the efficacy of asenapine in preventing relapse/impending relapse (hereafter referred to as 'relapse') in subjects who have been treated with asenapine for symptoms of schizophrenia for 26 weeks. In addition, to determine the safety and tolerability of asenapine for up to 1-year of treatment.