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Questions about schizophrenia
Schizophrenia is a chronic mental health condition that affects everything from how you think to how you feel and behave.
There are 2 kinds of schizophrenia symptoms, and they can vary greatly from person to person. Not everyone living with schizophrenia will have all the symptoms, and how symptoms are experienced can change over time.
Positive symptoms add feelings and behaviors that are not usually present, such as:
- Delusions, like believing you have special powers or thinking that people are out to get you
- Hallucinations, like hearing, seeing, feeling, or smelling things that others do not experience
- Disorganized thinking, speech, and behavior
Negative symptoms take away feelings or behaviors that are usually present, such as:
- Lack of emotion and avoiding family and friends
- Loss of interest in or ability to do daily tasks
- Difficulty with speech or carrying on a conversation
This is not a complete list of symptoms
The exact cause of schizophrenia is unknown, but what medical experts do know is that schizophrenia can be caused or triggered by a combination of genetic and environmental factors, including stress. There are several theories about other causes of schizophrenia and why it affects some people but not others.
About 2.8 million American adults live with schizophrenia.
About 1% of the world’s population lives with schizophrenia, and it occurs at similar rates across all ethnic groups and genders.
Although there is no cure for schizophrenia there are treatments that can help control schizophrenia symptoms.
The types of medications that are most commonly used to treat schizophrenia are called antipsychotics and are prescription medications prescribed by healthcare professionals. They’re believed to help balance the chemicals in the brain, and can be taken in 2 ways:
- Pills: taken by mouth every day or multiple times a day
- Long-acting injections: Given by a trained healthcare professional, and designed to be gradually released into the system to help control schizophrenia symptoms over a long period of time in 1 dose. This type of medication is different from what you have received during an emergency room visit.
Questions about long-acting injections
A doctor or trained healthcare professional gives the injection.
Usually the injection is given in the muscle of the upper arm or buttocks.
Injections are given by a doctor or trained healthcare professional, typically in a medical office or a mental health clinic. For assistance finding your options of where you can go to receive the injection, talk to your Treatment Team or search for locations near you with Janssen Connect Locator.
Not at all, it’s just a different way to take antipsychotic medication. Remember, a long-acting injection is different from the shots that are used in crisis situations like emergency room visits.
Questions about INVEGA SUSTENNA® and INVEGA TRINZA®
Your safety is always first. Your healthcare professional may give you a test dose with a pill just to make sure you can tolerate the active medication in INVEGA SUSTENNA®.Then, you will receive 2 starting doses of the long-acting injection and work with your doctor to determine the right monthly dose of INVEGA SUSTENNA® for you.
The most common side effects include:
- injection site reactions
- sleepiness or drowsiness
- dizziness
- feeling of inner restlessness or needing to be constantly moving
- abnormal muscle movements, including tremor (shaking), shuffling walk, uncontrolled involuntary movements, and abnormal movements of your eyes.
The most common side effects include:
- injection site reactions
- weight gain
- headache
- upper respiratory tract infections
- feeling restless or difficulty sitting still
- slow movements
- tremors (shaking)
- stiffness
- shuffling walk
INVEGA SUSTENNA® and INVEGA TRINZA® can cause serious side effects, including an increased risk of death in elderly people who are confused, have memory loss, and have lost touch with reality (dementia-related psychosis). INVEGA SUSTENNA® and INVEGA TRINZA® are not for treating dementia-related psychosis.
INVEGA SUSTENNA® and INVEGA TRINZA® may cause serious side effects including:
- stroke in elderly people (cerebrovascular problems) that can lead to death
- Neuroleptic Malignant Syndrome (NMS). NMS is a rare but very serious problem that can happen in people who receive INVEGA SUSTENNA® and INVEGA TRINZA®. NMS can cause death and must be treated in a hospital. Call your healthcare provider right away if you become severely ill and have any of these symptoms: high fever; severe muscle stiffness; confusion; loss of consciousness; changes in your breathing, heartbeat, and blood pressure
- problems with your heartbeat. These heart problems can cause death. Call your healthcare provider right away if you have any of these symptoms: passing out or feeling like you will pass out, dizziness, or feeling as if your heart is pounding or missing beats
- uncontrolled movements of your tongue, face, mouth, or jaw (tardive dyskinesia)
- metabolic changes. Metabolic changes may include high blood sugar (hyperglycemia), diabetes mellitus and changes in the fat levels in your blood (dyslipidemia), and weight gain
- low blood pressure and fainting
- changes in your blood cell counts
- high level of prolactin in your blood (hyperprolactinemia). INVEGA SUSTENNA® and INVEGA TRINZA® may cause a rise in the blood levels of a hormone called prolactin (hyperprolactinemia) that may cause side effects including missed menstrual periods, leakage of milk from the breasts, development of breasts in men, or problems with erection
- problems thinking clearly and moving your body
- seizures
- difficulty swallowing that can cause food or liquid to get into your lungs
- prolonged or painful erection lasting more than 4 hours. Call your healthcare provider or go to your nearest emergency room right away if you have an erection that lasts more than 4 hours
- problems with control of your body temperature, especially when you exercise a lot or spend time doing things that make you warm. It is important for you to drink plenty of water to avoid dehydration.
Tell your healthcare provider if you have any side effects that bother you or do not go away. These are not all the possible side effects of INVEGA SUSTENNA® and INVEGA TRINZA®. For more information, ask your healthcare provider or pharmacist.
Call your doctor for medical advice about side effects. You may report side effects of prescription drugs to the FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088.
You should tell your healthcare provider about all the medicines you take, including prescription drugs and things like over-the-counter medicines, vitamins, and herbal supplements. Be sure to keep a list of the medicines and supplements you take to show to your healthcare provider or pharmacist when you get a new medicine.
INVEGA SUSTENNA® or INVEGA TRINZA® may affect your ability to make decisions, think clearly, or react quickly. Do not drive, operate heavy machinery, or do other dangerous activities until you know how INVEGA SUSTENNA® or INVEGA TRINZA® affects you. And avoid becoming overheated or dehydrated.
It is not known if INVEGA SUSTENNA® or INVEGA TRINZA® will affect your unborn baby.
If you become pregnant while taking INVEGA SUSTENNA® or INVEGA TRINZA®, talk to your healthcare professional about registering with the National Pregnancy Registry for Atypical Antipsychotics. You can register by calling 1-866-961-2388 or visit https://womensmentalhealth.org/clinical-and-research-programs/pregnancyregistry
Infants born to women who are treated with INVEGA SUSTENNA® or INVEGA TRINZA® may experience symptoms such as tremors, irritability, excessive sleepiness, eye twitching, muscle spasms, decreased appetite, difficulty breathing, or abnormal movement of arms and legs. Let your healthcare professional know if these symptoms occur.
INVEGA SUSTENNA® and INVEGA TRINZA® can pass into your breast milk. Talk to your healthcare professional about the best way to feed your baby if you receive INVEGA SUSTENNA®or INVEGA TRINZA®.
It's possible. People may feel some pain or discomfort after receiving an injection of INVEGA SUSTENNA® or INVEGA TRINZA®. In the 5 pivotal schizophrenia trials for INVEGA SUSTENNA®, injection site reaction was one of the most common adverse reactions (incidence ≥5% and occurring at least twice as often as placebo). During a clinical trial, 3% of those treated with INVEGA TRINZA® experienced some sort of reaction at the injection site vs 0% with placebo.
Your healthcare provider will tell you how much INVEGA SUSTENNA® or INVEGA TRINZA® you will receive and when you will receive it. If you’re receiving INVEGA SUSTENNA® or INVEGA TRINZA®, you and your Treatment Team can discuss options for programs that may be able to provide you with reminders for your injection appointments, depending on availability in your area.
It is very important to keep all of your appointments and get your injections on time.
If you miss your appointment, call your doctor or Treatment Team as soon as you can. Your doctor or Treatment Team will decide what you should do next and work with you to schedule an appointment as soon as possible. If you stop coming for your injections, your symptoms may return. Just because you miss a dose doesn’t mean you should let it derail your progress.
You should not stop receiving injections of this medicine unless you have discussed this with your doctor. If you are still experiencing symptoms or side effects, be sure to let your healthcare professional know, as they may be able to adjust your dosage to ensure the medication is safe and effective for you.
Questions about financial support
Since out-of-pocket costs will be different depending on what coverage you have, be sure to check with your insurance provider for the exact cost. But the cost of your medication should be roughly the same per month, regardless of whether you’re taking INVEGA SUSTENNA® or INVEGA TRINZA®.
Eligible patients with commercial or private insurance through their employer, government employee health insurance, or the Health Insurance Marketplace may save on out-of-pocket medication costs for INVEGA SUSTENNA® or INVEGA TRINZA® with Janssen CarePath.
Learn more about the Janssen CarePath Savings Program.
See the full eligibility requirements.
Check your eligibility, enroll in the Savings Program, and receive a Savings Program card.
Or call a Janssen CarePath Care Coordinator at 877-524-3579, Monday-Friday, 8 AM - 8 PM ET.