New Survey Conveys Fundamental Shift in the Perceptions of Treatment Outcomes in Schizophrenia

Leuven, Belgium (ots/PRNewswire) -

- EUFAMI Survey Shows Carers Across Europe Believe in Remission as
a Realistic Treatment Goal for Many People Living With Schizophrenia

A large majority of families who care for someone with
schizophrenia are confident that many people with the disease can
lead independent, fulfilling lives with the ability to have a
part-time job when having optimal control over their symptoms. These
results announced today on World Mental Health Day, are findings from
a European survey of over 320 families and carers of people with
schizophrenia conducted between July and September 2007 by EUFAMI
(European Federation of Associations of Families of People with
Mental Illness).

"This survey tells us that, while families are realistic about the
possible outcomes for people with schizophrenia, they believe in
remission as a positive and sensible treatment goal," Kevin Jones
from EUFAMI commented. "At EUFAMI we are confident that this
optimistic outlook, together with developments in how the disease is
managed, will contribute to improving outcomes for those having to
cope with schizophrenia."

An estimated 6.6 million people in Europe suffer from
schizophrenia:(1) a serious mental illness characterised by
disturbances in the thoughts, perceptions, emotions and behaviour of
a person. People with schizophrenia and their families are not only
impacted by the disease itself but also by the stigma and negative
perception that the disorder has in the public eye. Due to advances
in the knowledge and treatment of schizophrenia over the last 50
years, the expected treatment outcomes have dramatically improved,
moving from symptom control or stability into more positive outcomes
such as sustained remission, functional remission and recovery. While
the concept of remission is already in use for other medical
disciplines it represents new thinking for schizophrenia and
indicates a level at which only minimal key symptoms are present
which do not interfere with the person's daily life.

The survey proved that the positive advances in the management of
schizophrenia clearly resonate with carers as 76% believe that
remission is achievable for people living with schizophrenia.

"Remission in schizophrenia signifies a dramatic advancement in
its management and demonstrates an improvement in the person's
condition to the point where it can be hard to tell that they
actually suffer from the condition. The survey highlighted that
rehabilitation into the family, workplace and society is becoming a
much more realistic goal to strive towards," said Kevin Jones.

Healthcare professionals however, are perceived by families and
carers as being less optimistic about the possible treatment outcomes
of schizophrenia. The concepts of remission or recovery were not
discussed with the majority of carers and only a small number were
introduced to treatment goals with a positive stance. If outcomes
were discussed by the healthcare professionals, families were told
that the most likely outcome was that the symptoms of schizophrenia
were likely to continue and impact their everyday life.

The survey also looked at what factors were important in achieving
and maintaining remission in people with schizophrenia, and 81% of
the carers surveyed felt that the chances of achieving remission
would be improved if appropriate treatment is instigated shortly
after diagnosis. Sadly, the survey also showed that in their
experience, accurate diagnosis often takes five years or more.

In order to stay in remission and prevent relapses, adherence to
treatment was identified by carers as the most important factor in
medical management of the disease. However, the survey also
highlighted a number of reasons why people with schizophrenia may
struggle to adhere to their medication long-term. The most common
reasons as indicated by carers were treatment side effects and lack
of education both regarding the condition and the possible benefits
of staying on treatment.

Interim survey results were presented as part of the IV EUFAMI
congress 'Touching the Stars' in ToruÅ, Poland on 16th September
2007.

Further information and detailed survey results can be obtained by
visiting http://www.eufami.org or contacting Kevin Jones at EUFAMI.

Notes to Editors:

About EUFAMI

EUFAMI, founded in 1992 and based in Belgium, is the European
Federation of Associations of Families of People with mental illness
and represents the voice of families and carers at the European
level. It has 50 member associations from 28 countries across Europe.
A founding principle of EUFAMI is that the rights of families as a
group must be established and recognised. EUFAMI is committed to work
for the improvement of care and welfare for people affected by mental
illness. Further information is available at http://www.eufami.org.

About the survey

The quantitative online survey was conducted by GfK HealthCare - a
London-based market research agency specialising in the
pharmaceutical and healthcare sectors - on behalf of EUFAMI for
carers/families of people with schizophrenia. 325 respondents
completed the survey (covering a total of 21 countries), all of whom
were screened to ensure that they lived within Europe and were a
current 'carer' of a patient diagnosed with schizophrenia. The
fieldwork took place during the period 25th June and 16th September
2007 inclusive. The survey was funded by an educational grant from
Janssen-Cilag.

About remission

Remission in schizophrenia means the person's condition has
improved so much that the core symptoms of schizophrenia (those that
lead to the diagnosis of schizophrenia) are so low that the person
can generally function as well as they did before they were
diagnosed. In fact, it becomes quite hard to tell that the person
actually suffers from schizophrenia. This improvement must have been
seen for at least six months before they can be clinically defined as
being 'in remission'.

To 'recover' from schizophrenia means that the person is
completely symptom free and their day-to-day functioning is no longer
limited by the illness.

Further survey results

Survey results are available at http://www.eufami.org or by
contacting Kevin Jones at EUFAMI or Clare Pressney at Resolute
Communications.

References

(1). WHO Media Centre. Available at: http://www.euro.who.int/media
centre/PressBackgrounders/2001/20011128_1 Accessed on 26.09.07

ots Originaltext: EUFAMI
Im Internet recherchierbar: http://www.presseportal.de

Contact:
For further information contact: Kevin Jones, Secretary General,
EUFAMI, Diestsevest 100, 3000 Leuven, Belgium, Tel: +32-16-74-50-42,
Email: secr.general.office@eufami.org or Clare Pressney, Resolute
Communications, Tel: +44-(0)207-357-8187, Email:
clare.pressney@resolutecommunications.com


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