Is quality of life among minimally symptomatic patients with schizophrenia better following withdrawal or continuation of antipsychotic treatment?
This secondary report from our 52-week, double-blind, relapse prevention trial tested whether stable patients with schizophrenia who were taken off active drug treatment would experience greater improvements in long-term quality of life than those who were continued on antipsychotic treatment. On average, Heinrichs-Carpenter Quality-of-Life Scale total scores improved by 4.3 +/- 10.6 points during treatment with olanzapine (10-20 mg/d; n = 212), but decreased by 7.1 +/- 14.6 points during treatment with placebo (n = 92; P < 0.001). Mean Quality-of-Life Scale total scores worsened in both treatment groups for the relapsing patient subgroup, whereas for nonrelapsing patients, those treated with olanzapine had significantly improved mean Quality-of-Life Scale total scores compared with those given placebo. For a subset of nonrelapsing patients who were considered "nonexacerbating" on the basis of minimal non-clinically relevant increases in psychopathology, Quality-of-Life Scale total mea
