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Atypical antipsychotics


The atypical antipsychotics (AAP; also known as second generation antipsychotics (SGAs)) are a group of antipsychotic drugs (antipsychotic drugs in general are also known as major tranquilizers and neuroleptics, although the latter is usually reserved for the typical antipsychotics) used to treat psychiatric conditions. Some atypical antipsychotics have received regulatory approval (e.g. by the FDA of the US, the TGA of Australia, the MHRA of the UK) for schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, autism, and as an adjunct in major depressive disorder.

Both generations of medication tend to block receptors in the brain's dopamine pathways. Atypicals are less likely – than the most widely used typical antipsychotic haloperidol – to cause extrapyramidal motor control disabilities in patients such as unsteady Parkinson's disease-type movements, body rigidity, and involuntary tremors. However, only a few of the atypicals have been demonstrated to be superior to lesser-used, low-potency first-generation antipsychotics in this regard.


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