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Giving psychiatric drugs to ex-prisoners can lead to a huge reduction in reoffending, according to a new study.
The treatment can help make those given to violence more pacified and allow people to adjust more easily to life outside of confinement, according to the research from Sweden.
Rates of violent reoffending plunged when former inmates were treated with medicine, according to the work.
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Science news in pictures Over 400 species discovered this year by Natural History Museum The ancient invertabrate worm-like species rhenopyrgus viviani (pictured) is one of over 400 species previously unknown to science that were discovered by experts at the Natural History Museum this year
PA
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Ye et al/Current Biology
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Reuters
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A. Gennari
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Clay Bolt
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New Mexico Museum of Natural History
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Reuters/AP
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Viktor Radermacher / SWNS
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ESO/A. Müller et al
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Science news in pictures Nasa releases stunning images of Jupiter's great red spot The storm bigger than the Earth, has been swhirling for 350 years. The image's colours have been enhanced after it was sent back to Earth.
Pictures by: Tom Momary
Treatment with antipsychotic drugs saw a 42 per cent fall in the rate of violent reoffending. Treatment with psychostimulants led to a 36 per cent drop and drugs used to help with addictive disorders cut violent assaults by more than half.
The research looked at prisoners from across Sweden who were released between 2005 and 2010, and watched their progress until the end of 2013. The study looked at 22,275 former inmates, and found that 4,031 of them committed violent offenses during the period studied.
Lead researcher Professor Seena Fazel, from Oxford University's Department of Psychiatry, said: "Many countries are keen to reduce the number of people in their prisons, but are unsure how to balance rehabilitation with protecting the public.
"This study raises the possibility that prescribed medications may provide a way to cut the risk of violent reoffending, as part of a wider package of support.
"The research also highlighted that medications seem to work beyond their immediate effects on symptoms.
"We have shown that in a population with many mental health problems and high risks of reoffending, improving adherence and links with community health services may offer an effective way to improve outcomes for the individual prisoner and also public health and safety more broadly."
The findings are published in the Journal of the American Medical Association .
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