Hospitalizations and emergency room visits after initiation of long-acting injectable antipsychotics

INTRODUCTION: Long-acting injectable antipsychotics (LAIs) serve as a means to ensure medication adherence with the intention of improving outcomes for psychiatric patients. Evidence remains inconclusive regarding the impact of LAIs on relapses and psychiatric hospitalizations rates. METHODS: The primary objective of this retrospective pre/post study was to determine whether initiating an LAI in a veteran population with schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, or bipolar disorder is associated with a decrease in the 1-year rate of psychiatric hospitalizations and emergency room (ER) visits. RESULTS: For the combined primary endpoint, the 1-year rate of psychiatric hospitalizations and ER visits for patients with schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, or bipolar disorder was not significantly reduced after initiation of LAIs (n = 50, median [interquartile range]: 1.5 [1, 3] to 1 [0, 3], P = .055). However, the secondary endpoint of the 1-year rate of psychiatric hospitalizations was reduced (1 [0, 3] to 0 [0, 2], P = .026). Additionally, for those who received injections on a regular basis, the 1-year rate of hospitalizations and ER visits was significantly reduced (2 [1, 3] to 0 [0, 1.5], P = .009). DISCUSSION: This retrospective study suggests that the initiation of LAIs is associated with a reduced rate of psychiatric hospitalizations as well as a reduced rate of psychiatric hospitalizations and ER visits for those patients who receive injections on a regular basis.