Augmentation (pharmacology)

Augmentation, in the context of the pharmacological management of Psychiatry, refers to the combination of two or more drugs to achieve better treatment results. Examples of use include:

• Prescribing an atypical antipsychotic when someone is already taking a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor for the treatment of depression.^[1]
• Prescribing estrogen for someone already being treated with antipsychotics for the management of Schizophrenia.^[2]
• Giving an adenosine A2A receptor antagonist on top of existing treatment for Parkinson's disease.^[3] Note that this is not in the field of Psychiatry.

In other field of Pharmacology, the term is occasionally used to describe treatments that increase (augment) the concentration of some substance in the body. This might be done when someone is deficient in a hormone, enzyme or other endogenous substance. For example:

• To give α1 antitrypsin to someone who is deficient in α1 antitrypsin.^[4]

References

1. Wright, BM; Eiland EH, 3rd; Lorenz, R (March 2013). "Augmentation with atypical antipsychotics for depression: a review of evidence-based support from the medical literature.". Pharmacotherapy. 33 (3): 344–59. doi:10.1002/phar.1204. PMID 23456734.
2. Begemann, MJ; Dekker, CF; van Lunenburg, M; Sommer, IE (November 2012). "Estrogen augmentation in schizophrenia: a quantitative review of current evidence.". Schizophrenia Research. 141 (2-3): 179–84. doi:10.1016/j.schres.2012.08.016. PMID 22998932.
3. Zhu, C; Wang, G; Li, J; Chen, L; Wang, C; Wang, Y; Lin, P; Ran, H (November 2014). "Adenosine A2A receptor antagonist istradefylline 20 versus 40 mg/day as augmentation for Parkinson's disease: a meta-analysis.". Neurological research. 36 (11): 1028–34. doi:10.1179/1743132814y.0000000375. PMID 24725292.
4. Campos, MA; Lascano, J (October 2014). "α1 Antitrypsin deficiency: current best practice in testing and augmentation therapy.". Therapeutic advances in respiratory disease. 8 (5): 150–61. doi:10.1177/1753465814542243. PMID 25013223.