Olanzapine as the ideal “trip terminator”? Analysis of online reports relating to antipsychotics' use and misuse following occurrence of novel psychoactive substance‐related psychotic symptoms
Giuseppe Valeriani, Ornella Corazza, Francesco Saverio Bersani, Claudia Melcore, Antonio Metastasio, Giuseppe Bersani, Fabrizio Schifano
Human Psychopharmacology Clinical and Experimental July 1, 2015 DOI: 10.1002/hup.2431 via OpenAlex
Summary
AI-generated from the abstractPeople who use novel psychoactive substances (NPS) often self-administer olanzapine to manage psychotic crises or 'bad trips,' a practice facilitated by online sharing of experiences and easy access to medications. Exploratory searches of 163 discussion forums and websites in four languages from November 2012 to 2013 found that olanzapine is the most frequently self-prescribed drug for this purpose, typically taken for a few days at 5–50 mg/day. Only a few formal studies have assessed olanzapine's effectiveness for NPS-induced psychosis, yet pro-drug websites describe it as the 'ideal' molecule to terminate bad trips. Health professionals should be informed about risks of olanzapine misuse.
Study at a glance
| Characteristics | Exploratory qualitative study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Online discussion forum users discussing novel psychoactive substance use |
| Dose | 5-50 mg/day |
| Duration | November 2012-2013 |
| Keywords | Olanzapine Psychiatry Medicine Psychology Schizophrenia object-oriented programming |
| Citations | 41 |
| Key finding | Olanzapine is the most frequently self-prescribed medication by NPS users to manage psychotic crises or bad trips, typically taken at 5–50 mg/day for a few days. |
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: The pharmacological self-management of novel psychoactive substance (NPS)-induced psychopathological consequences represents a fast growing phenomenon. This is facilitated by the frequent sharing of NPS intake experiences online and by the ease of access to a range of psychotropic medications from both the online and street market. Olanzapine is anecdotally reported by Web users to be the most frequent self-prescribed medication to cope with NPS-induced psychoses. Hence, we aimed here at better assessing olanzapine use/misuse for this purpose. METHODS: Exploratory qualitative searches of 163 discussion fora/specialized websites have been carried out in four languages (English, German, Spanish, and Italian) in the time frame November 2012-2013. RESULTS: Most NPS-users allegedly self administer with olanzapine to manage related psychotic crises/"bad trips". This may be typically taken only for a few days, at a dosage range of 5-50 mg/day. CONCLUSIONS: Only a few research studies have formally assessed the effectiveness of olanzapine and indeed of other second-generation antipsychotics to treat NPS-induced psychosis. Olanzapine was suggested here from a range of pro drug websites as being the "ideal" molecule to terminate "bad trips". Health professionals should be informed about the risks related to olanzapine misuse.