Antipsychotic medication for challenging behaviour in people with intellectual disability: A systematic review of randomized controlled trials

Abstract

A study was performed to determine the effectiveness of antipsychotic medication for people with intellectual disability (ID) and challenging behaviour. Randomized controlled trials comparing antipsychotic medication to placebo in people with ID and challenging behaviour were identified by electronic searching and hand-searching. Reviewers independently evaluated and analysed data on an intention-to-treat basis. Only three randomized controlled trials could be included in the analyses. These trials provided no evidence as to whether antipsychotic medication does or does not help adults with ID and challenging behaviour. There is limited data on this important issue and good quality research is urgently needed.