Pharmaceutical Industry discussion, review, analysis, news and information.

According to a large study conducted at 33 university and hospital clinics and nine doctor's offices in the U.S., antipsychotic drugs originally developed to treat schizophrenia,such as Zyprexa, Seroquel and Risperdal, appears ineffective in treating psychotic symptoms in Alzheimer's Disease patients.

On average, patients stopped taking their pills after about eight weeks, about the same duration as those taking a placebo. Depending on the drug, 37 percent to 50 percent of patients discontinued their pills because they weren't working, and up to 24 percent stopped taking them because of side effects, such as drowsiness, weight gain and confusion. All told, 82 percent of patients quit their medications.

According to the researchers, these drugs may work for certain individual cases, but clearly emphasizes the need for drugs to treat such behaviors. Read the full report from Seattle Times.