Risperidone versus olanzapine for schizophrenia

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Antipsychotic medication is a mainstay of treatment for schizophrenia and risperidone and olanzapine are the most popular treatment choice of the new generation drugs. OBJECTIVES: To determine the clinical effects, safety and cost effectiveness of risperidone compared with olanzapine for treating schizophrenia. SEARCH STRATEGY: We searched the Cochrane Schizophrenia Group's Register (June 2004) which is based on regular searches of, amongst others, BIOSIS, CENTRAL, CINAHL, EMBASE, MEDLINE and PsycINFO. References of all identified studies were inspected for further trials. We also contacted relevant pharmaceutical companies for additional information. SELECTION CRITERIA: We inclu..