A Controlled Study of Lithium vs. Chlorpromazine in Acute Schizophrenics

Abstract

A previous double-blind controlled evaluation of lithium and chlorpromazine in both manic and schizo-affective individuals carried out in this unit (Johnsonet al., 1968) indicated that 85 per cent of the schizo-affectives showed a worsening of thought disorder when treated with lithium carbonate, the majority developing symptoms of an acute brain syndrome. The possibility of experimental design accounting for such treatment outcome must be considered.