Phenothiazines in Prevention of Psychiatric Hospitalization

Abstract

The relationship between duration of treatment and incidence of hospitalization was studied on a sample of 173 patients, previously reported, after a 36-months' interval, and on a total sample of 445 chronically schizophrenic outpatients. Subjects were assigned randomly to placebo, chlorpromazine, or promazine therapy and treated under double-blind conditions continuously for periods up to 61 months. Results clearly indicated that the effect of chlorpromazine in reducing incidence of hospitalization is greatest early in treatment but diminishes progressively thereafter. The question is raised whether long-term phenothiazine treatment of outpatient schizophrenics prevents or delays hospitalization.