Family treatment and medication dosage reduction in schizophrenia: Effectson patient social functioning, family attitudes, and burden

The effects of 2 family intervention programs (supportive family management [SFM], including monthly support groups for 2 years; or applied family man agement [AFM], including 1 year of behavioral family therapy plus support g roups for 2 years), and 3 different neuroleptic dosage strategies (standard , low, targeted) on social functioning of patients with schizophrenia, thei r relatives' attitudes, and family burden were examined. AFM was associated with lower rejecting attitudes by relatives toward patients and less frict ion in the family perceived by patients. Patients in both AFM and SFM impro ved in social functioning but did not differ, whereas family burden was unc hanged. Medication strategy had few effects, nor did it interact with famil y intervention. The addition of time-limited behavioral family therapy to m onthly support groups improved family atmosphere, but did not influence pat ient social functioning or family burden.