Risperdal PBS listing altered to include treatment for children with autism

Atypical antipsychotic medication Risperdal (also known as risperidone) has recently had its listing with the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) altered. New 3mg and 4mg Quicklet disintegrating tablet forms of the medication are now listed and approved for use in autism. Studies show that Risperdal can lead to improvement in lethargy and social withdrawal, stereotypic behaviour, hyperactivity, and inappropriate speech.

Autism occurs in around 125 per 20,000 children between the ages of six and twelve. This means that, on average, there is one child with an autism spectrum disorder in every 160 children in this age group, representing 10,625 children Australia-wide.⁵

Risperdal is now PBS listed for use in autism as:

"Authority Required. For the treatment under the supervision of a paediatrician or psychiatrist, in combination with non-pharmacological measures, of severe behavioural disturbances in a child or adolescent aged less than 18 years with autism (by DSM-IV or ICD-10 criteria) . Behaviour disturbances are defined as severe aggression and injuries to self or others where non-pharmacological methods alone have been unsuccessful."

This addition of Risperdal to the PBS scheme for autism should lighten both the financial and emotional burden on parents of children with autism spectrum disorder, through the reduction of associated symptoms. It should be noted that the new PBS listing applies only to autism, and while Risperdal is still registered in the treatment for conduct disorder, this remains off the PBS and available only through private purchase.

Besides this new listing, Risperdal continues to be a very common and useful medication in the treatment of both the positive and negative symptoms of schizophrenia. With the lifetime prevalence of schizophrenia at 4 per 1,000⁴ and a point incidence of 15 per 100,000,³ Risperdal remains a crucial drug in the treatment of this very important mental health disorder. Risperdal is useful for acute treatment of manic episodes in patients with bipolar disorder, which is fairly common and can affect around 2.5% of people at some time in their life.² Risperdal also remains a useful treatment for behavioural disturbances in dementia and conduct disorder.¹

Reference:

1. ‘Risperdal’ [online], MIMS Online. Available at: http://www.mims.com.au (last accessed: 25/03/2007)
2. Goldney, R, Fisher, L, Grande, ED, et al. Bipolar I and II disorders in a random and representative Australian population. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry. 2005; 39(8): 726-9.
3. McGrath, J, Saha, S, Welham, J, et al. A systematic review of the incidence of schizophrenia: the distribution of rates and the influence of sex, urbanicity, migrant status and methodology. BMC Medicine. 2004; 2(13): http://www.biomedcentral.com/1741-7015/2/13 (last accessed 25/03/2007).
4. Saha, S, Chant, D, Welham, J, et al. A systematic review of the prevalence of schizophrenia. PLoS Med. 2005; 2(5): e141.
5. Wray, J and Williams, K. ‘The Prevalence of Autism in Australia: Can it be established from existing data?’ [online], Autism Spectrum Disorders. Autism Advisory Board, Available at: http://www.autismaus.com.au/aca/pdfs/PrevalenceReport.pdf (last accessed: 25/03/2007)