New Schizophrenia Treatment Recommendations

by William Van Ornum, Ph.D. on April 22, 2012 10:55 am

Faculty of the Harvard Medical School note that Patient Outcomes Research Team (PORT) Treatment Recommendations for Schizophrenia have been updated:

“The Schizophrenia Patient Outcomes Research Team (PORT) has issued updated treatment recommendations that not only include detailed advice about medication and psychosocial treatments but also address, for the first time, common problems in this population such as smoking cessation, substance abuse treatment, and weight loss. The authors note that the goal is not only to help clinicians and patients understand how to increase chances of schizophrenia recovery (albeit modest in scope), but also how to reduce the risk of additional life-threatening medical problems such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

“The PORT recommendations, issued in 1998 and first updated in 2003, were funded by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality and the National Institute of Mental Health. Researchers at the University of Maryland wrote the latest update after consulting with leading schizophrenia experts. In contrast to efforts like the American Psychiatric Association practice guidelines for schizophrenia and the Texas Medication Algorithm Project, which attempt to address the full range of situations clinicians encounter, the PORT review is more conservative in scope. The PORT authors limit their recommendations to those interventions that have been tested in randomized controlled trials.”

The recommendations are highly detailed and specific and can be read in further detail here.