What Is Loxapine Used For?

Loxapine uses are primarily concerned with the treatment of schizophrenia in adults, one of the most confusing and disabling mental illnesses. It is believed to work by affecting dopamine levels in the brain. The drug is not approved for use in children. Loxapine is used for off-label reasons too on occasion, including the treatment of agitation, psychotic depression, and dementia.

 

What Is Loxapine Used For? -- An Overview

 Loxapine (Loxitane®) is a prescription medicine known as a "typical antipsychotic" that has been licensed to treat schizophrenia.
 
Schizophrenia is one of the most confusing and disabling mental illnesses. Although the causes of schizophrenia are not fully understood, it is currently thought that genetics and environmental factors play important roles. Depending on the type of schizophrenia (see Types of Schizophrenia), symptoms may include the following:
 
  • Hallucinations
  • Delusions
  • Thought disorders
  • Disorders of movement
  • Speaking infrequently, even when forced to interact
  • Flat affect (immobile facial expression, monotonous voice)
  • Lack of pleasure in everyday life
  • A diminished ability to initiate and sustain planned activity
  • Poor executive functioning (the ability to absorb and interpret information and make decisions based on that information)
  • An inability to stay focused
  • Problems with working memory (the ability to keep recently learned information in mind and use it right away).
     
Although psychotherapy may be helpful for schizophrenia (see Psychosocial Therapy for Schizophrenics), medication is often essential to successful schizophrenia treatment.
 
(What Is Loxapine Used For? Continued: Page 2)
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Written by/reviewed by: Kristi Monson, PharmD; Arthur Schoenstadt, MD
Last reviewed by: Kristi Monson, PharmD;