This volume tries to put current therapy - achievements, shortcomings, remaining medical needs - and emerging new targets into the context of increasing knowledge regarding the genetic and neurodevelopmental contributions to the pathophysiology of schizophrenia. Some of the chapters also deal with respective experimental and clinical methodology, biomarkers, and translational aspects of drug development. The volume concentrates on reviewing the ongoing research attempting to identify novel treatments for the cognitive deficits and negative symptoms of schizophrenia, which are not treated adequately by current antipsychotic medications.

An estimated 51 million people worldwide have schizophrenia, 2.2 million of them in the United States. While early diagnosis and appropriate treatment improve the long-term prognosis, schizophrenia is a disease that is difficult to manage. In Living with Schizophrenia, Drs. Jeffrey Rado and Philip G. Janicak, specialists in treating people who have schizophrenia, offer an easy-to-read primer for people with the disorder, along with their families and other caregivers. Drawing on their combined sixty years of clinical and research experience, Drs. Rado and Janicak· define schizophrenia and explain what is known about its causes· discuss the difference between negative symptoms (such as lack of emotion and social withdrawal) and positive symptoms (such as hallucinations, delusions, and thought disorders)· describe medication and psychosocial and behavioral treatments―and the importance of early diagnosis and treatment for better long-term outcomes· explain what people with schizophrenia and their families can do to help keep the person well· explore how schizophrenia affects the entire family· detail medical conditions that people with schizophrenia are more likely than other people to have―including heart disease, obesity, and diabetes · offer key takeaway points for every topicDesigned for the lay reader and based on the most recent medical literature, Living with Schizophrenia offers information and understanding to help people coping with this often misunderstood disorder to best achieve recovery and healing.