Research summaries for autism therapy: atypical antipsychotic

definition of atypical antipsychotic: Also called second-generation antipsychotics. This class of medications is used to treat psychiatric conditions including schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. These medications are also prescribed off-label for some people with autism to help reduce aggression and other negative behaviors. Atypical antipsychotics are defined only by being different from typical antipsychotics. Therefore, the class of atypical antipsychotics includes medications that work in a wide variety of ways. Currently atypical antipsychotics are considered first choice over typical antipsychotics because of fewer side effects than the typical antipsychotics in most people. Examples of atypical antipsychotics include clozapine, risperidone, and olanzapine.
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National Patterns in the Outpatient Pharmacological Management of Children and Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder, Summarized Jun 17, 2010

Many drugs are prescribed to help manage the symptoms of autism and yet very few studies have been done to demonstrate that these medications are helpful.

This article describes the use of drug therapy in the U.S. for youth with autism. Recently, there has been a large increase in the use of brain drugs (psychotropic medications) to treat young people with autism. This may be due to the fact that more people know about autism. It may also be due to the presence of new drugs such as atypical antipsychotics and newer stimulants. There are no guidelines to help doctors know how to prescribe brain drugs to help children with autism.

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May the Best Friend be an Enemy if not Recognized Early: Possible Role of Omega-3 Against Cardiovascular Abnormalities Due to Antipsychotics in the Treatment of Autism, Summarized May 18, 2010

Omega-3 fatty acid supplements may reduce the incidence of sudden cardiac death in patients with autism who are prescribed atypical antipsychotics.

This paper describes the logic behind using omega-3 fatty acids to protect the hearts of children given brain drugs (atypical antipsychotics). Atypical antipsychotics may cause sudden death by causing the heart to stop beating. Omega-3 fatty acids have been shown to protect people from heart disease. The authors note that, in many cases, children with autism have only low levels of omega-3 fatty acids in their blood. They believe that omega-3 fatty acid supplements may help children with autism in many ways and may help to protect the heart of children giving atypical antipsychotics.

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A Placebo-Controlled, Fixed-Dose Study of Aripiprazole in Children and Adolescents with Irritability Associated with Autistic Disorder, Summarized May 13, 2010

Aripiprazole may help to treat irritability in children with autism.

This double-blind, placebo-controlled study compared the atypical antipsychotic aripiprazole with placebo in terms of being able to reduce irritability in children (aged 6 to 17 years) with autism. This eight week study found that aripiprazole was able to reduce irritability in children with autism. Children who received aripiprazole also had decreased hyperactivity. There was a high placebo response rate of 35% on this study. The authors also note that this was a fixed-dose study and therefore doctors were not able to change the dose of the drug based upon the patient’s response to the drug.

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Developing Drugs for Core Social and Communication Impairment in Autism, Summarized Jan 21, 2009

There are several drugs that are being studied to see if they may be able to treat the core social symptoms of autism.... Drugs that are being studied as possible treatments for social symptoms of autism include: selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI) and atypical antipsychotics such as risperidone. This review article describes the problems that have slowed down the discovery of a drug to treat the social symptoms of autism.... Read more...

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Synonyms for atypical antipsychotic include: atypical antipsychotics
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