Dosing issues and depot medication in the maintenance treatment of schizophrenia.

Antipsychotic medication has proved to be of enormous value in the long-term treatment of schizophrenia. Maintenance medication has been shown to reduce rates of relapse and rehospitalization substantially and to enable patients to benefit from psychosocial treatments and vocational rehabilitation. At the same time, improving compliance while optimizing the benefits and minimizing the risks associated with long-term drug treatment has been a major challenge. Depot medications are a valuable part of a maintenance strategy for many patients. Considerable data are now available on dose-response relationships with depot drugs, improving our ability to use them judiciously.