title: Suicide Prevention in Schizophrenia: Do Long-Acting Injectable Antipsychotics (LAIs) have a Role?
abstract: Suicide risk is a major cause of death among patients with schizophrenia. Death by suicide has been reported in approximately 5% of schizophrenia patients although this figure appears to be an underestimate of the problem. A number of risk factors are routinely reported as associated with suicide risk among these patients, some of which are modifiable by targeted therapeutic strategies. Clozapine is the only compound that gathered evidence as an effective treatment for reducing suicide risk in schizophrenia. Long-Acting Injectable Antipsychotics (LAIs) have a range of advantages in terms of efficacy, safety and tolerability in the treatment of schizophrenia, and one area of interest is whether LAI-treatment may decrease suicidality by indirectly acting on a range of risk factors for suicide specific to schizophrenia patients. This background encouraged the present review of research pertaining to LAIs in relation to modifiable risk factors for suicide in schizophrenia. We viewed our task as gathering, speculating and critically appraising the available research relevant to the topic, with the aim of formulating a hypothesis to be tested with further research.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Sant'Andrea Hospital, Sapienza University of Rome, Via di Grottarossa 1035, 00189 Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Maurizio
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Pompili
authors.affiliation: University of Hertfordshire, Psychopharmacology, Drug Misuse and Novel Psychoactive Substances Research Unit, School of Life and Medical Sciences, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Laura
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Orsolini
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, United States.
authors.forename: Dorian A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Lamis
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, United States.
authors.forename: David R
authors.initials: DR
authors.lastname: Goldsmith
authors.affiliation: Psychiatry Residency Training Program, Faculty of Medicine and Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Adele
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Nardella
authors.affiliation: Psychiatry Residency Training Program, Faculty of Medicine and Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Giulia
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Falcone
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosciences, Mental Health and Sensory Organs, Suicide Prevention Center, Sant'Andrea Hospital, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Valentina
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Corigliano
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, University of Naples SUN, Naples, Italy.
authors.forename: Mario
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Luciano
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, University of Naples SUN, Naples, Italy.
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Fiorillo
mesh_terms: D014150:Antipsychotic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D003692:Delayed-Action Preparations; D006801:Humans; D012559:Schizophrenia / Q000150:complications / Q000188:drug therapy*; D012565:Schizophrenic Psychology; D000092864:Suicide Prevention
chemical_list: D014150:Antipsychotic Agents; D003692:Delayed-Action Preparations
keywords: Long-acting injectable antipsychotics; hallucination; pharmacological; prevention; schizophrenia; suicide