Invega is a prescription medication used for the treatment of schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder. Invega belongs to a group of drugs called atypical antipsychotics. It may work by changing the activity of certain natural substances in the brain.
This medication comes in an extended-release (long-acting) tablet form and is taken once a day in the morning with or without food. Swallow the tablets whole with plenty of water or other liquid. Do not split, chew, or crush the tablets.
WARNING: INCREASED MORTALITY IN ELDERLY PATIENTS WITH DEMENTIA-RELATED PSYCHOSIS
Elderly patients with dementia-related psychosis treated with antipsychotic drugs are at an increased risk of death. Analyses of 17 placebo-controlled trials (modal duration of 10 weeks), largely in patients taking atypical antipsychotic drugs, revealed a risk of death in drug-treated patients of between 1.6 to 1.7 times the risk of death in placebo-treated patients. Over the course of a typical 10-week controlled trial, the rate of death in drug-treated patients was about 4.5%, compared to a rate of about 2.6% in the placebo group. Although the causes of death were varied, most of the deaths appeared to be either cardiovascular (e.g., heart failure, sudden death) or infectious (e.g., pneumonia) in nature. Observational studies suggest that, similar to atypical antipsychotic drugs, treatment with conventional antipsychotic drugs may increase mortality. The extent to which the findings of increased mortality in observational studies may be attributed to the antipsychotic drug as opposed to some characteristic(s) of the patients is not clear. Invega is not approved for the treatment of patients with dementia-related psychosis.
