Zyprexa

That's not a surprise, he said, because Clozaril "was believed to be the most therapeutically effective drug out there." But it's under-used because of the risk of side effects that require patients to go through special monitoring, he said.

In a companion analysis of other patients who did not want to try Clozaril or who'd abandoned their first medication because of side effects, Risperdal and Clozaril is sold by Novartis SA, Risperdal by Janssen Pharmaceutica and Both papers appear in the April issue of the American Journal of Psychiatry.

The work, funded by the National Institute of Mental Health, was the second phase of a government study to seek the most effective way to treat people with this devastating mental disorder.

Schizophrenics struggle with such symptoms as hallucinations, delusions, social withdrawal, and other mental impairments that interfere with a normal lifestyle.

Dr.

Darrel Regier, director of the research division of the American Psychiatric Association, said the head-to-head drug comparisons are "a major step forward" that will help doctors make a choice for a second drug to try.

Doctors have to consider both effectiveness and side effects of the various drugs in deciding what's best for each patient, he said.

In fact, McEvoy said if a patient had gotten inadequate respo...

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