The Past, Present, and Future of Psychopharmacology in Korea

This paper reviews the history of psychopharmacology in Korea after 1885, when Western medicine was first introduced to Korea. In the past, Korean psychiatrists had occasionally used barbiturates and fever therapy to treat mental patients, as did psychiatrists worldwide, and psychosocial treatments were common until drug treatments became readily available in the 1960s. At this time, the true era of psychopharmacology and biological psychiatry in Korea began with the use of chlorpromazine followed by use of other phenothiazines, haloperidol, meprobamate, and tricyclic antidepressants. A small number of pioneers trained abroad in biological and pharmacological psychiatry and neuroscience. Following their return, Korean psychopharmacology developed along with international developments in psychopharmacology and neuroscience. In the 1990s, a second generation of antidepressants and antipsychotic agents was introduced to Korea, and currently most major psychotherapeutic drugs are available in Korea soon after they appear in the world market. Until the 1990s, most psychopharmacological research was clinical. Basic research has been rare due not only to lack of financial support but also to unfavorable conditions for research. The general conditions for research have been improving with the recent economical growth in Korea. Many young researchers have returned to Korea after training abroad and are now leading research and international collaboration activities. Accordingly, Korean psychopharmacological research and related aspects of neuroscience have progressed greatly. This paper discusses also future directions for psychopharmacological research and the Korean College of Neuropsychopharmacology (KCNP) as related to projected socio-cultural changes and especially to integrating drug treatment with psychosocial treatment.