This page was translated automatically from Turkish. Read the original

This page is an AI-assisted Turkish summary of the study presented at the 26th World Congress of Psychiatry. The study belongs to the presenting authors; please refer to the original source when citing it.

EV0489

Reassessing antipsychotic prescribing preferences in first-episode psychosis

RE-EVALUATION OF ANTIPSYCHOTIC PRESCRIBING CHOICES IN PATIENTS WITH FIRST EPISODE PSYCHOSIS

Initial antipsychotic selection in first-episode psychosis varies significantly by care team, and the medication selected significantly affects the likelihood of treatment continuation at 12 months.

The study aimed to examine differences in initial antipsychotic (AP) selection among care teams in first-episode psychosis (FEP), whether these choices changed over the study period, and which medications were continued at 12 months. In this retrospective service evaluation, 249 cases were excluded from an Early Intervention Service (EIS) caseload of 577 based on exclusion criteria, leaving 328 patients for analysis; data were obtained from Carenotes records, and patients were grouped according to their initial care team: EIS (n=60), non-EIS community team (n=121), and inpatient team (n=147). Prescribing patterns differed significantly between teams (p=0.003): aripiprazole was the most frequently selected medication by the EIS team (41%), whereas olanzapine predominated in the non-EIS community team (55%) and the inpatient team (68%). At 12 months, 72% of patients were still taking an antipsychotic, while 28% were not taking any antipsychotic medication. Continuation rates for the initially prescribed medication were 52% for aripiprazole and 35% for olanzapine, and initial antipsychotic selection was significantly associated with medication continuation at 12 months (p=0.015). The poster emphasizes that antipsychotics with a lower side effect (SE) burden were more likely to be continued, and that continuation was associated with fewer relapses, fewer readmissions, and a reduced likelihood of chronicity. In conclusion, the marked preference for olanzapine in non-specialist services was considered noteworthy given its side effect burden and high rates of discontinuation or switching.

All WCP 2026 summaries