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. 2017 Jan 26;47(1):27-32.
doi: 10.64719/pb.4353.

Asenapine for the Control of Physical Aggression: A Prospective Naturalist Pilot Study

Jin Shi Amon  1 , Sarah B Johnson  1 , Rif S El-Mallakh  1
Affiliations

Asenapine for the Control of Physical Aggression: A Prospective Naturalist Pilot Study

Jin Shi Amon et al. Psychopharmacol Bull. .

Abstract

It has been previously purported that higher relative affinity to the dopamine D4 receptor compared to D2 (i.e., D4/D2 affinity ratio > 1) may underlie unique antiaggression potency. Asenapine is a newer antipsychotic that also has D4/D2 affinity ratio > 1. It has demonstrated efficacy in reducing acute agitation in a placebo-controlled study. We performed a prospective naturalistic, pilot, proof of concept study on an inpatient psychiatric unit. Among patients with aggression at time of admission (≥ 12 on Refined Aggression Questionnaire [RAQ], or ≥ 2 on Modified Overt Aggression Scale [MOAS]), asenapine treatment was associated with a significant reduction in total aggression as measured by the MOAS (-14.7 ± 11.59 vs. -5.4 ± 10.12, P = 0.045), and particularly physical aggression (-8.0 ± 5.06 vs. -0.78 ± 2.40, P < 0.0001) compared to treatment that did not include asenapine. These data suggest that asenapine may be useful in the targeted treatment of aggression, and provide some support for the D4/D2 affinity ratio hypothesis.

Keywords: aggression; asenapine; dopamine receptors; physical aggression; treatment; violence.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
In Comparison to Standard Treatment, Asenapine Significantly Decreased Physical Aggression Over a Hospitalization Admission as Measured by the MOAS
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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