Antipsychotic Drug Helps with Disruptive Kids

The antipsychotic drug Risperdal (risperidone) appears to be a safe and effective long-term agent for reducing severe disruptive behaviors in children with below-average intelligence, researchers report in the American Journal of Psychiatry.

The antipsychotic drug Risperdal (risperidone) appears to be a safe and effective long-term agent for reducing severe disruptive behaviors in children with below-average intelligence, researchers report in the American Journal of Psychiatry. According to Dr. Robert L. Findling of University Hospital of Cleveland, Ohio, and colleagues, the findings from this 48-week study mirror those from an initial 6-week study they conducted and “support the durability of response” to Risperdal in this patient population. Findling and colleagues enrolled 107 children with severe disruptive behaviors and low IQs who completed at least 2 weeks of the original trial of Risperdal. Significant improvements in behavioral symptoms occurred within the first weeks of treatment and were maintained throughout the duration of the study, they report. At the beginning of the original trial, 71 percent of children had “marked, severe, or extremely severe” behavioral problems. At the end of the extension study, 62 percent of them had “no symptoms or very mild or mild symptoms,” the team reports. The most common side effects with Risperdal were mild to moderate sleepiness, headache, runny nose, and weight gain. Symptoms, such as restlessness and muscle spasms, which are an “important risk associated with antipsychotics,” were not common in this study. There were also no relevant changes in vital signs or cognitive function. “Given these findings and the chronic nature of these conditions, further study is warranted to assess the safety and efficacy of Risperdal in pediatric patients treated for more than 1 year,” Findling’s team concludes. (SOURCE: American Journal of Psychiatry: Reuters Health News: May 2004)