Relapse prevention study of paliperidone extended-release tablets in Chinese patients with schizophrenia

The objective of this study was to evaluate the long-term efficacy, safety, and tolerability of paliperidone extended-release (pali ER), in Chinese patients with schizophrenia. In this parallel-group, relapse prevention, phase-3 study (screening [14-day], pali ER open-label run-in [8-week] and stabilization [6-week] phases, and double-blind (DB) treatment [variable duration], and open-label extension phases [24-week]), 136/201 patients with schizophrenia were randomized (1:1) to pali ER (3–12mg) or placebo during the DB phase. Final analysis showed that, out of 135 patients in ITT (DB) population, 71 (52.6%) had a relapse event, 45 (33.3%) were ongoing at the time the study was stopped, and 19 (14.1%) discontinued from the DB phase. Time to relapse (primary endpoint) favored pali ER (hazard ratio=5.23 [95% CI: 2.96, 9.25], p