Sulpiride is an
atypical antipsychotic drug

Drug

A drug, broadly speaking, is any substance that, when absorbed into the body of a living organism, alters normal bodily function. There is no single, precise definition, as there are different meanings in drug control law, government regulations, medicine, and colloquial usage.In pharmacology, a...

 of the benzamide class

Benzamide

Benzamide is an off-white solid with the chemical formula of C6H5CONH2. It is a derivative of benzoic acid. It is slightly soluble in water, and soluble in many organic solvents.- External links :* *...

 used mainly in the treatment of psychosis

Psychosis

Psychosis means abnormal condition of the mind, and is a generic psychiatric term for a mental state often described as involving a "loss of contact with reality"...

 associated with schizophrenia

Schizophrenia

Schizophrenia is a mental disorder characterized by a disintegration of thought processes and of emotional responsiveness. It most commonly manifests itself as auditory hallucinations, paranoid or bizarre delusions, or disorganized speech and thinking, and it is accompanied by significant social...

 and major depressive disorder. Sulpiride is more commonly used in Europe

Europe

Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

 and Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

. Levosulpiride

Levosulpiride

A substituted benzamide anti-psychotic, reported to be a selective antagonist of dopamine D2 receptors activity on both central and peripheral levels.It is an atypical neuroleptic and a prokinetic agent. Levosulpiride is also claimed to have mood elevating properties...

 is its purified levo- isomer

Isomer

In chemistry, isomers are compounds with the same molecular formula but different structural formulas. Isomers do not necessarily share similar properties, unless they also have the same functional groups. There are many different classes of isomers, like stereoisomers, enantiomers, geometrical...

 and is sold in India

India

India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

 for similar purpose. So far it has not been approved in the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 and Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

. The drug has strong chemical and clinical similarities to the related antipsychotic amisulpride

Amisulpride

Amisulpride , is an atypical antipsychotic used to treat psychosis in schizophrenia and episodes of mania in bipolar disorder. In small doses it is also used to treat depression. It was introduced by Sanofi-Aventis in the 1990s.-Pharmacology:Amisulpride functions primarily as a D2 and D3 receptor...

.

• Productive psychosis: treatment with rather high doses—in excess of 600 mg daily
• Long-term treatment of negative (unproductive) psychosis: in moderate doses (approx.