ArticleSchizophrenia research2024
The effectiveness of the lorazepam challenge test in pediatric catatonia: A multisite retrospective cohort study.
Article in Schizophrenia research, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 9 papers.
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Who cites it
9 citing papers in PubMed.
- Use of Electroconvulsive Therapy for Catatonia in Down Syndrome Regression Disorder: A Systematic Review, Case Series, and Analysis.Journal of autism and developmental disorders · 2026Article
- Rising Prevalence of Pediatric Catatonia Presenting to Inpatient Care: A Retrospective Analysis.Journal of child and adolescent psychopharmacology · 2026Article
- Rethinking Catatonia in Neurodevelopmental Conditions: Toward a Refined Typology and Research Framework.Psychiatry and clinical psychopharmacology · 2025Review
- High-Frequency Utilization of the Outpatient Messaging System in a Specialized Outpatient Catatonia Clinic for Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder.Journal of child and adolescent psychopharmacology · 2025Article
- A real-world pharmacovigilance study of lorazepam based on the FDA adverse event reporting system database.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Longitudinal Symptom Burden and Pharmacologic Management of Catatonia in Autism With Intellectual Disability: An Observational Study.Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism Research · 2025Observational
- Longitudinal Symptom Burden and Pharmacologic Management of Catatonia in Autism with and without Profound Impairment: An Observational Study.medRxiv : the preprint server for health sciences · 2024Article
- Comparative effectiveness of lorazepam versus diazepam for acute catatonia: A retrospective analysis.General hospital psychiatryArticle
- Revisiting the lorazepam challenge: An algorithm for clinical-decision making.General hospital psychiatryArticle
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
7 authors.
Funding
Abstract
objectiveCatatonia is a neuropsychiatric disorder associated with changes in behavior and affect. In adults, catatonia can respond rapidly to treatment with benzodiazepines as part of the "lorazepam challenge test." The acute effectiveness of benzodiazepine treatment in pediatric catatonia, however, has received less study. This study reports catatonia severity as measured by the Bush Francis Catatonia Rating Scale (BFCRS) in pediatric patients before and after treatment with lorazepam.
methodsMulticenter retrospective cohort study from 1/1/2018 to 6/1/2023 of patients aged 18 and younger with a clinical diagnosis of catatonia and assessment using the BFCRS before and after treatment with lorazepam.
resultsAmong 54 patients, median age was 16, and 26 (48.1 %) were female. Neurodevelopmental disabilities were present in 24 (44.4 %) of patients. Prior to treatment, patients had a mean BFCRS score of 16.6 ± 6.1, which significantly reduced to 9.5 ± 5.3 following treatment with lorazepam (mean paired difference 7.1; t = 9.0, df = 53, p < 0.001), representing a large effect size (Hedges's g = 1.20; 95 % CI: 0.85 to 1.55). No significant association was found between lorazepam dose or route of administration and clinical response, nor were age, sex, study site, the presence of a neurodevelopmental disorder, the presence of hyperactive catatonic features, or the time between treatment and reassessment associated with post-treatment BFCRS.
conclusionsLorazepam resulted in a rapid improvement in BFCRS score in pediatric patients, with a large effect size. Further research is needed into optimal dosing and route of administration of the lorazepam challenge test in pediatric patients.
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