Comparison of discharge rates and drug costs for patients with schizophrenia treated with risperidone or olanzapine

This study, compared the discharge rates and drug costs of 789 patients wit h schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder who began pharmacotherapy with olanzapine or risperidone between July 1997 and June 1998. Discharge rates 30 days after the start of treatment were 45 percent for the patients treat ed with risperidone and 32 percent for those treated with olanzapine (p=.00 1). Daily drug costs during tile same period were $6.42 for risperidone and $12.29 for olanzapine (p < .001). For risperidone, lower dosages were asso ciated with higher hospital discharge rates, whereas no significant associa tion was observed for olanzapine, These data suggest that among inpatients with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder, use of risperidone results in a higher discharge rate and a lower drug cost than use of olanzapine.