Schizophrenia:

Causes of Schizophrenia

The causes of schizophrenia are not known. Multiple factors such as genetics and brain chemistry may play a role.

Complications of Schizophrenia

Schizophrenia can have a devastating impact on patients and their families. Patients with schizophrenia have increased risk for self-destructive behaviors and suicide. The antipsychotic drugs used to treat schizophrenia can have severe side effects, including increased risk of obesity and diabetes.

Medications

Schizophrenia is a chronic condition, which is usually treated with antipsychotic medication. There are two main classes of these drugs:

Typical antipsychotics (“first-generation” antipsychotics) include haloperidol (Haldol), chlorpromazine (Thorazine), perphenazine (Trilafon), thioridazine (Mellaril), trifluoperazine (Stelazine), and fluphenazine (Prolixin). All of these drugs are available as generics.
Atypical antipsychotics (“second-generation” antipsychotics) include clozapine (Clozaril, generic), risperidone (Risperdal, generic), olanzapine (Zyprexa, generic), quetiapine (Seroquel), ziprasidone (Geodon), aripiprazole (Abilify), palperidone (Invega), iloperidone (Fanapt), asenapine (Saphris), and lurasidone (Latuda).