More than Half of Patients with Schizophrenia Are Receiving Polypharmacy and Co-Prescription of Anxiolytics in Pakistan —Findings from Research on Asian Prescription Pattern in 2016

Objective: Little is known about the prescription pattern of psychotropic drugs for patients with schizophrenia in Pakistan. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the characteristic features of psychotropic drug prescriptions for patients with schizophrenia in Pakistan. Methods: Three centers in Pakistan participated in a large scale collaborative study known as Research on Asian Prescription Pattern (REAP). The 2016 REAP survey included centers from 15 countries in Asia and used a unified research protocol. The design of the study was quantitative and of descriptive epidemiology. Analysis was made on the data collected from three centers i.e., Lahore, Karachi and Islamabad. The data collected in Pakistan were compared with those from other Asian countries. The details of REAP were presented on the homepage of REAP (http://www.REAP.Asia). Results: From Pakistan, 298 patients were included. Patients with schizophrenia in Pakistan received higher rate of antipsychotic polypharmacy and a higher rate of co-prescription of mood stabilizers and anxiolytics when compared with participants from other South Asian countries (India and Bangladesh). Conclusion: The main findings of the study were that a majority of the patients were prescribed antipsychotic polypharmacy drugs in Pakistan. Insufficient training on the use of psychotropic drugs and a lack of treatment guideline are considered to be the major contributing factors. Further education and training on the proper use of psychotropic drugs are recommended to psychiatrists in Pakistan. The guidelines on pharmacotherapy for patients with schizophrenia should also be developed and promoted in Pakistan.

Mn-based MXene with high lithium-ion storage capacity

3d-transition metal(Fe,Co,Ni,and Mn)-based MXene materials have been predicted to demonstrate exceptional electrochemical performance because of their good electrical conductivity and the presence of metallic atoms with multiple charge states.However,until now,there have been no reports on MXenes based on Fe,Co,Ni,and Mn,due to the lack of 3d-metal-layered precursors.Herein,we successfully synthesized the first 3d-transition metal-based MXenes,Mn_(2)CT_(x) by exfoliating a layered precursor derived from the anti-perovskite bulk Mn3GaC.The as-prepared Mn_(2)CT_(x) MXene nanosheets were employed as anode materials in lithium-ion batteries,which exhibited stable storage capacity of 764.7 mAh·g^(-1) at 0.5 C,placing its storage capacities at an upper-middle level compared with other reported MXene materials as well as other Mn-based anode materials.Overall,this study opens a new avenue for MXene research by synthesizing 3d-transition metal-based MXenes for electrochemical applications.