Refill patterns of atypical and conventional antipsychotic medications at a national retail pharmacy chain

This study examined whether patients who received prescriptions for convent ional and atypical antipsychotics in routine outpatient care continued medi cation therapy. Prescription refill records of more than 25,000 patients fr om a national retail pharmacy chain were surveyed during a full eight-month period. At the start of the ninth month, 48 percent of the patients taking conventional agents were continuing therapy. The overall rate for those ta king atypical agents was 44 percent; however, the rate for those taking clo zapine was 71 percent. Atypical agents, despite their improved side effect profile, were not associated with higher rates of continued treatment. A hi ghly supervised medication administration process, frequent patient-provide r contact, and favorable patient selection may help explain the higher rate among patients taking clozapine.