title: Added donepezil for stable schizophrenia: a double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Schizophrenia is a disorder with cognitive deficits that could stem from cholinergic dysfunction.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  Our aim was to examine if donepezil administered to stable, medicated outpatients with schizophrenia improves cognition and psychopathology.
  
  
  METHODS
  We conducted a double-blind placebo-controlled trial of donepezil up to 10 mg/day added for 8 weeks to ongoing antipsychotic treatment in 36 typical community-treated schizophrenia patients not selected for cognitive impairment.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Donepezil did not improve measures of cognition or psychopathology. It was well tolerated.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Consistent with other studies, addition of donepezil to stable patients with schizophrenia did not improve cognition or measures of psychopathology. This result does not support the hypothesis that residual symptoms and cognitive problems result from a cholinergic deficit that can be remedied by an acetylcholinesterase inhibitor. A donepezil add-on strategy might make sense in selected schizophrenia cases where a pathological process is known to affect cholinergic neurons (e.g., history of head injury or comorbid dementia).
authors.affiliation: MGH Schizophrenia Program, Freedom Trail Clinic, Boston, MA 02114, USA.
authors.forename: Oliver
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Freudenreich
authors.forename: Lawrence
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Herz
authors.forename: Thilo
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Deckersbach
authors.forename: A Eden
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Evins
authors.forename: David C
authors.initials: DC
authors.lastname: Henderson
authors.forename: Corinne
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Cather
authors.forename: Donald C
authors.initials: DC
authors.lastname: Goff
mesh_terms: D002214:Capsules; D002800:Cholinesterase Inhibitors / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000188:drug therapy; D000077265:Donepezil; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D004311:Double-Blind Method; D020820:Dyskinesias / Q000209:etiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007189:Indans / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010880:Piperidines / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D010919:Placebos; D012559:Schizophrenia / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy*; D012798:Sialorrhea / Q000139:chemically induced; D013997:Time Factors; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D002214:Capsules; D002800:Cholinesterase Inhibitors; D007189:Indans; D010880:Piperidines; D010919:Placebos; D000077265:Donepezil