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N-acetyl-p-amino-phenol (paracetamol, acetaminophen) in the treatment of acute schizophrenia

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 July 2009

I. Falloon ,
D. C. Watt ,
K. Lubbe ,
A. Macdonald  and
Michael Shepherd
I. Falloon
Affiliation:
St John's Hospital, Stone, Institute of Psychiatry, London
D. C. Watt
Affiliation:
St John's Hospital, Stone, Institute of Psychiatry, London
K. Lubbe
Affiliation:
St John's Hospital, Stone, Institute of Psychiatry, London
A. Macdonald
Affiliation:
St John's Hospital, Stone, Institute of Psychiatry, London
Michael Shepherd*
Affiliation:
St John's Hospital, Stone, Institute of Psychiatry, London
*
1Address for correspondence: Professor Michael Shepherd, Institute of Psychiatry, De Crespigny Park, Denmark Hill, London SE5 8AF.
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Synopsis

The hypothesis that schizophrenia is caused by the release of prostaglandin E into the hypothalamus and may sometimes be accompanied by an elevation of temperature was examined by a clinical trial of the prostaglandin E suppressant N-acetyl-p-amino-phenol (paracetamol, acetaminophen). Ten acute schizophrenic patients were included in a double-blind, crossover trial of paracetamol and a placebo, in which each treatment was given for a week. Regular 4-hourly temperatures were recorded in all these cases and in 5 non-schizophrenic patients for comparison. The findings provided no evidence that paracetamol mitigated the symptoms of schizophrenia. The temperatures of the schizophrenics were not elevated more than those of the controls, but the number of cases used was probably too small for this finding to be conclusive.

Type
Brief Communication
Information
Psychological Medicine , Volume 8 , Issue 3 , August 1978 , pp. 495 - 499
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1978

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