Evidence supports the notion that N-acetylcysteine may be a useful adjunct to standard treatment for the improvement of schizophrenia symptoms. - GreenMedInfo Summary

OBJECTIVE: There is accumulating evidence that adjunctive treatment with-acetylcysteine may be effective for schizophrenia. This study aimed to conduct a comprehensive meta-analysis examining the efficacy of randomised control trials investigating-acetylcysteine as an adjunct treatment for schizophrenia and the first to investigate cognition as an outcome.

METHODS: We systematically reviewed Medline, EmCare, PsycINFO, Embase, CINAHL Complete, China Knowledge Resource Integrated Database and the Cochrane Clinical Trials online registry for randomised control trials of-acetylcysteine for schizophrenia. We undertook pairwise meta-analyses of-acetylcysteine vs placebo for psychosis symptoms and cognition.

RESULTS: Seven studies, including= 220 receiving-acetylcysteine and= 220 receiving placebo, met inclusion criteria for the pairwise meta-analyses. Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale negative and total scores were significantly improved in the-acetylcysteine group after 24 weeks of treatment. The cognitive domain of working memory improved with-acetylcysteine supplementation.

CONCLUSION: Evidence supports the notion that-acetylcysteine may be a useful adjunct to standard treatment for the improvement of schizophrenia symptoms, as well as the cognitive domain of working memory. Treatment effects were observed at the later time point (⩾24 weeks), suggesting that longer interventions are required for the success of-acetylcysteine treatment.