25 Years of Breakthroughs: 1989 Breakthrough in Schizophrenia Treatment

In 1989 NARSAD Distinguished Investigator and Foundation Scientific Council member, Herbert Y. Meltzer, M.D., proved that the drug Clozapine(tm) can be used on patients with severe treatment-resistant schizophrenia. Clozapine, developed in the early 1960s, was used in trials and on a limited basis around the world until it fell out of favor in the mid-1970s. Dr. Meltzer, with the assistance of a NARSAD Grant, studied the effects of this antipsychotic medication on schizophrenia patients that, until then, could not find relief from other medications. He discovered that Clozapine was, in fact, an effective treatment and today, it continues to be used as a last resort to treating the illness. In the early 2000s, Meltzer further discovered that Clozapine can also be used to reduce the risk of suicide in patients with schizophrenia.

Read article in Breakthroughs

Read article from Vanderbilt University

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