Improving 1-year outcome in first-episode psychosis - OPUS trial

Background Because early illness course and outcome may affect the long-term outcome of schizophrenia-spectrum disorders, it is especially important to address poor outcome in this early critical period. Aims To evaluate whether integrated treatment compared with standard treatment reduced the proportion of patients with poor clinical and social outcome after 1 year. Method A total of 547 patients with first-episode psychosis were included in the study, 275 randomly assigned to integrated treatment and 272 to standard treatment. Measures assessed psychotic symptoms and social functioning. Results There was a significant beneficial effect of integrated treatment v. standard treatment on 'any poor outcome: Integrated treatment had a significantly better effect on 'any poor outcome' in patients with schizophrenia compared with patients in standard treatment. Conclusions The integrated treatment significantly reduced the proportion of patients with poor clinical and social outcome compared with standard treatment.