Schizophrenia: etiology and pharmacotherapy

Abstract

Schizophrenia is one of the major psychiatric disorders. Psychosis, in its narrow definition, is restricted to delusions or hallucinations in the absence of insight into their pathological nature. Impairment in psychosocial function is an essential feature of schizophrenia. Research in the last decade has confirmed that schizophrenia is a brain disorder that cannot be attributed solely to psychosocial factors. It is widely accepted from twin and adoption studies that schizophrenia has a significant genetic component. In addition, it is a general belief that schizophrenia is caused by a biological abnormality, even though all attempts to identify that abnormality have been unsuccessful. A major landmark in the history of the understanding and treatment of schizophrenia was the discovery that dopamine D2-blocking agents can control the hallucinations and delusions of schizophrenic patients. However, clinicians have noticed that classical antipsychotics are generally ineffective against the negative symptoms that are prominent in patients with a chronic course. In this article, we will focus on the etiology and pharmacotherapy of schizophrenia.