Benzodiazepines in schizophrenia: a need for reassessment.

The controlled clinical studies that have attempted to evaluate the usefulness of benzodiazepines in the treatment of schizophrenic patients are reviewed. It is concluded that the doses used were probably too small and inadequate to induce an ameliorating effect. Benzodiazepines may be promising candidates for antipsychotic drugs since, by facilitating CABAergic neurotransmission, they diminish dopaminergic neurotransmission.