Efficacy and Safety of Lurasidone in Children and Adolescents: Recommendations for Clinical Management and Future Research

Title:Efficacy and Safety of Lurasidone in Children and Adolescents: Recommendations for Clinical Management and Future Research

Volume: 27 Issue: 39

Author(s): Andrea Amerio*, Costanza Giacomini, Laura Fusar-Poli, Andrea Aguglia, Alessandra Costanza, Gianluca Serafini, Eugenio Aguglia and Mario Amore

Affiliation:

• Department of Neuroscience, Rehabilitation, Ophthalmology, Genetics, Maternal and Child Health (DINOGMI), Section of Psychiatry, University of Genoa, Genoa,Italy

Keywords: Adolescents, children, early onset bipolar disorder, early onset schizophrenia, efficacy, lurasidone, safety.

Abstract: Lurasidone is a novel azapirone derivative and atypical antipsychotic agent with a high binding affinity for dopaminergic (D₂), serotoninergic (5-HT_2A), and 5-HT₇ receptors (antagonist), a moderate affinity for 5- HT_1A receptors (partial agonist), and no appreciable affinity for histaminergic (H₁) and muscarinic (M₁) receptors. It was recently included by the European Medication Agency among the in-label pharmacological treatments for children and adolescents affected by early onset schizophrenia. As a dopamine and serotonin antagonist, lurasidone acted on a variety of receptors and showed its efficacy both as an antipsychotic and an activating compound. Administered with food or within 30 minutes from a meal, it presents sufficient bioavailability and does not interact with most of the other drugs during metabolism. With little effects on hormones and weight gain, potential procognitive profile due to its 5-HT₇ antagonism, and reduced extrapyramidal side effects, lurasidone could be a good choice in terms of both effectiveness and tolerability, particularly for patients headed towards a long-term treatment. This article aims to summarize the available scientific evidence from the literature on the use of lurasidone in children and adolescents and to provide recommendations for clinical management and future research.

Cite this article as:

Amerio Andrea*, Giacomini Costanza , Fusar-Poli Laura , Aguglia Andrea, Costanza Alessandra, Serafini Gianluca , Aguglia Eugenio and Amore Mario, Efficacy and Safety of Lurasidone in Children and Adolescents: Recommendations for Clinical Management and Future Research, Current Pharmaceutical Design 2021; 27 (39) . https://dx.doi.org/10.2174/1381612827666210804110853