Researchers in Germany, China and Australia teamed up to find, through a meta-analysis of research pertaining to 1045 patients receiving antipsychotics, that augmentation with benzodiazepines did not improve outcomes. The authors recommend that benzodiazepines should be considered only for “ultra short-term sedation of acutely agitated patients but not for augmentation of antipsychotics in the medium- and long-term pharmacotherapy of schizophrenia and related disorders.”
Dold, M., Li, C., Gillies, D., Leucht, S.; Benzodiazepine augmentation of antipsychotic drugs in schizophrenia: A meta-analysis and cochrane review of randomized controlled trials. European Neuropsychopharmacology. Available online April 17, 2013
