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Pharmacopsychiatry 2005; 38(1): 20-23
DOI: 10.1055/s-2005-837767
Review
© Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York

Emerging Evidence for the Use of Atypical Antipsychotics in Borderline Personality Disorder[1]

K. P. Grootens1 , R. J. Verkes1
  • 1UMC St Radboud Nijmegen, Unit for Clinical Psychopharmacology and Neuropsychiatry, 6500 HB Nijmegen, The Netherlands
Further Information

Publication History

Received: 16.1.2004 Revised: 26.4.2004

Accepted: 16.6.2004

Publication Date:
11 February 2005 (online)

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Background: The availability of new atypical antipsychotics provides new opportunities for the treatment of borderline personality disorder (BPD). Methods: Original papers on this topic were sought. Our study reviewed and discussed 14 papers. Results: 2 RCTs, 4 non-controlled open-label studies and 8 case reports. The patient populations studied were highly diverse and the dropout rate after a long follow-up period was high. All of the articles reported positive effects of olanzapine, clozapine, quetiapine and risperidone. Conclusion: BPD patients with psychotic-like, impulsive or suicidal symptoms might benefit from atypical antipsychotics. Since the methodological quality of the reviewed articles is poor, further randomised placebo-controlled studies with longer follow-ups are needed before any firm conclusions can be drawn.

1 An extended version of this manuscript has been previously published in Dutch in Tijdschr Psychiatr 2003; 8: 717 - 724 [Journal of Dutch Society for Psychiatry].

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1 An extended version of this manuscript has been previously published in Dutch in Tijdschr Psychiatr 2003; 8: 717 - 724 [Journal of Dutch Society for Psychiatry].

K. P. Grootens

UMC St Radboud Nijmegen

Unit for Clinical Psychopharmacology and Neuropsychiatry

Reinier Postlaan 10

PO Box 9101

6500 HB Nijmegen

The Netherlands

Phone: +31 24 36 16 864

Fax: +31 24 35 40 561

Email: k.grootens@psy.umcn.nl