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-HT2A), and 5-HT7 receptors (antagonist), a moderate affinity for 5-
HT1A 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.
