title: A case series of clozapine for borderline personality disorder.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is a common, debilitating disorder for which the evidence base for treatment is modest. This case series aimed to explore preliminary evidence of clozapine's effectiveness for patients with severe BPD.
  
  
  METHODS
  We examined the case notes of 22 female inpatients with a primary diagnosis of BPD who had started treatment with clozapine. Baseline routine clinical data were extracted from the records and at 6 monthly intervals thereafter, up to a maximum of 18 months after starting treatment. Patients also were interviewed about their experiences.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We found evidence for a beneficial effect of clozapine across several clinical domains. Symptom severity, need for enhanced observations, use of additional medication, and the number of aggressive incidents all significantly improved after clozapine. The greatest improvements appeared within the first 6 months of initiating treatment. There also was a significant increase in weight.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The results suggest that clozapine, with suitable health monitoring, may be beneficial for this clinical population. Larger, randomized, blinded, and controlled prospective studies are needed to confirm these findings.
authors: St. Andrew's Academic Centre, Department of Forensic and Neurodevelopmental Science, Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London, Northampton, United Kingdom.
authors: Catherine
authors: C
authors: Frogley
authors: Katina
authors: K
authors: Anagnostakis
authors: Shawn
authors: S
authors: Mitchell
authors: Fiona
authors: F
authors: Mason
authors: David
authors: D
authors: Taylor
authors: Geoff
authors: G
authors: Dickens
authors: Marco M
authors: MM
authors: Picchioni
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D014150:Antipsychotic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001883:Borderline Personality Disorder / Q000188:drug therapy*; D003024:Clozapine / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D014150:Antipsychotic Agents; D003024:Clozapine