Comparison of Efficacy between Aripiprazole and Haloperidol in the Treatment of Patients with Delirium

Lee, Cheol Soon; Rim, Gwang Min; Hahn, Kyu Hee; Kim, Bong Jo

Abstract

OBJECTIVE
Delirium is defined as an alteration in mental status characterized by brief disturbances in consciousness and attention, cognition, and perception that tend to fluctuate during the course of the day. Traditionally, haloperidol has been used to treat agitation as it may occur in delirium. However, atypical antipsychotics are increasingly used to treat delirium itself. A comparative study was undertaken to compare the clinical efficacy of haloperidol and aripiprazole for the treatment of delirium.
METHODS
Forty patients (20 patients assigned to haloperidol and 20 to aripiprazole) diagnosed with delirium by DSM IV-TR were recruited and randomly assigned to receive a flexible-dose regimen of haloperidol or aripiprazole over 7 days. The severity of delirium was assessed by using the Delirium Rating Scale-Revised-98 scores (DRS-R-98).
RESULTS
DRS-R-98 severity scores for each group decreased significantly over the study period (p<0.01), but no statistically significant difference was detected between the two groups (p=0.607).
CONCLUSION
These data show no statistically significant difference in efficacy between haloperidol and aripiprazole in the treatment of delirium. Since haloperidol has great potential for causing extrapyramidal symptoms(EPS), aripiprazole, a medication with known low side effects, may be an effective alternative agent in the treatment of delirium.