| 1 | J Neural Transm (Vienna) 2000 -1 107: 501-9 |
|---|---|
| PMID | 11215760 |
| Title | Abnormal protein phosphorylation in post-mortem brain tissue from bipolar patients. |
| Abstract | Abnormal phosphorylation has been proposed to be involved in the pathogenesis of affective disorders. The present study investigated basal and cAMP-stimulated endogenous protein phosphorylation in human post-mortem brain tissue from bipolar and schizophrenic patients. Furthermore, basal kinase activity and stimulated protein kinase A activity were measured. The frontal and occipital cortex were analysed. Using [gamma-32P]ATP as phosphate donor, basal and cAMP-stimulated phosphorylation of endogenous proteins was measured in the absence or presence of 8-Br-cAMP, respectively. The proteins were separated on SDS-gels and the radioactivity in the individual bands was measured. We observed a significant reduction of 32P incorporation in three protein substrates (15, 16 and 21 kD) in frontal cortex of bipolar patients. However, there were no differences in the PKA activity between any of the groups. The present study demonstrates abnormal phosphorylation of specific proteins in brain tissue obtained from bipolar patients in comparison to schizophrenics and controls. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 2 | J Neural Transm (Vienna) 2000 -1 107: 501-9 |
| PMID | 11215760 |
| Title | Abnormal protein phosphorylation in post-mortem brain tissue from bipolar patients. |
| Abstract | Abnormal phosphorylation has been proposed to be involved in the pathogenesis of affective disorders. The present study investigated basal and cAMP-stimulated endogenous protein phosphorylation in human post-mortem brain tissue from bipolar and schizophrenic patients. Furthermore, basal kinase activity and stimulated protein kinase A activity were measured. The frontal and occipital cortex were analysed. Using [gamma-32P]ATP as phosphate donor, basal and cAMP-stimulated phosphorylation of endogenous proteins was measured in the absence or presence of 8-Br-cAMP, respectively. The proteins were separated on SDS-gels and the radioactivity in the individual bands was measured. We observed a significant reduction of 32P incorporation in three protein substrates (15, 16 and 21 kD) in frontal cortex of bipolar patients. However, there were no differences in the PKA activity between any of the groups. The present study demonstrates abnormal phosphorylation of specific proteins in brain tissue obtained from bipolar patients in comparison to schizophrenics and controls. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 3 | Neuroreport 2000 May 11: 1493-6 |
| PMID | 10841364 |
| Title | Prenatal viral infection causes alterations in nNOS expression in developing mouse brains. |
| Abstract | Epidemiological evidence points to prenatal viral infection being responsible for some forms of schizophrenia and autism. We hypothesized that prenatal human influenza viral infection in day 9 pregnant mice may cause changes in the levels of neuronal nitric oxide synthase (nNOS), an important molecule involved in synaptogenesis and excitotoxicity, in neonatal brains. Brains from 35- and 56-day-old mice were prepared for SDS-gel electrophoresis and Western blotting using polyclonal anti nNOS antibody. Quantification of nNOS showed time and region-dependent changes in the levels of nNOS protein. Mean rostral brain area value from prenatally infected animals showed a significant (p=0.067) increase of 147% in nNOS levels at 35 days postnatally, with an eventual 29% decrease on day 56. Middle and caudal brain areas showed reductions in nNOS in experimental mice at 35 and 56 days, with a significant 27% decrease in nNOS in the middle segment of day 56 brains (p=0.016). Significant interactions were found between group membership and brain area (Wilks lambda=0.440, F(2.9)=5.72, p=0.025); there was also a significant interaction between brain area, group and age (Wilks lambda=0.437, F(2.9)=5.79, p=0.024). These results provide further support for the notion that prenatal viral infection affects brain development adversely via the pathological involvement of nNOS expression. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 4 | Neuroreport 2001 Apr 12: 929-33 |
| PMID | 11303762 |
| Title | Reduction in anti-apoptotic protein Bcl-2 in autistic cerebellum. |
| Abstract | Autism is a neurodevelopmental disorder with genetic and environmental etiologies. Neurohistologic findings have shown Purkinje cell depletion and atrophy in the cerebellum of autistic subjects. We hypothesized that apoptotic mechanisms might explain these Purkinje cell findings. Bcl-2 is a potent anti-apoptotic regulatory protein, which is reduced in schizophrenic brains. Autistic and normal control cerebellar cortices matched for age, sex and PMI were prepared for SDS-gel electrophoresis and Western blotting using specific anti-Bcl-2 antibodies. Quantification of Bcl-2 showed a significant 34-51% reduction in autistic cerebellum (mean (+/- s.d.) optical density/75 microg protein 0.290 +/- 0.08, n = 5) compared with controls (0.595 +/- 0.31, n = 8; p < 0.04); levels of neuronal-specific class III beta-tubulin (controls 49.8 +/- 6.7; autistics 36.2 +/- 18.2), or beta-actin (controls 7.3 +/- 2.7; autistics 6.77 +/- 0.66) in the same homogenates did not differ significantly between groups. These results indicate for the first time that autistic cerebellum may be vulnerable to pro-apoptotic stimuli and to neuronal atrophy as a consequence of decreased Bcl-2 levels. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 5 | Prog. Neuropsychopharmacol. Biol. Psychiatry 2002 Apr 26: 481-5 |
| PMID | 11999898 |
| Title | Regional cerebral blood flow in deficit/nondeficit types of schizophrenia according to SDS criteria. |
| Abstract | A relationship between "hypofrontality" and a negative form of schizophrenia is commonly found. The Schedule for the Deficit Syndrome (SDS) provides specific criteria for assessing the presence of negative symptoms, their duration and whether the symptoms are primary or secondary. The purpose of our study was to compare the regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) at rest, in 62 deficit and nondeficit schizophrenic patients, according to the SDS criteria (French version). The deficit patients in our population were comparable to those described in the literature (stability of their negative symptoms with time, poor premorbid adjustment, duration of the illness, age at the first episode, etc.). No difference was found in the locoregional perfusion with respect to the DSM-III-R type of schizophrenia, the sex or the type of treatment received. The patients with a deficit form of schizophrenia showed a significant bilateral reduction in single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) perfusion in the right frontodorsolateral cortex (P=.0105) and the left frontodorsolateral cortex (P=.0004) compared with the nondeficit schizophrenic patients. The contribution of SDS seems to be helpful in distinguishing between significant cerebral characteristics in deficit schizophrenics, as defined by Carpenter. These results suggest a decrease in prefrontal perfusion at rest, which corresponds with neuropsychological data. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 6 | Prog. Neuropsychopharmacol. Biol. Psychiatry 2002 Apr 26: 481-5 |
| PMID | 11999898 |
| Title | Regional cerebral blood flow in deficit/nondeficit types of schizophrenia according to SDS criteria. |
| Abstract | A relationship between "hypofrontality" and a negative form of schizophrenia is commonly found. The Schedule for the Deficit Syndrome (SDS) provides specific criteria for assessing the presence of negative symptoms, their duration and whether the symptoms are primary or secondary. The purpose of our study was to compare the regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) at rest, in 62 deficit and nondeficit schizophrenic patients, according to the SDS criteria (French version). The deficit patients in our population were comparable to those described in the literature (stability of their negative symptoms with time, poor premorbid adjustment, duration of the illness, age at the first episode, etc.). No difference was found in the locoregional perfusion with respect to the DSM-III-R type of schizophrenia, the sex or the type of treatment received. The patients with a deficit form of schizophrenia showed a significant bilateral reduction in single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) perfusion in the right frontodorsolateral cortex (P=.0105) and the left frontodorsolateral cortex (P=.0004) compared with the nondeficit schizophrenic patients. The contribution of SDS seems to be helpful in distinguishing between significant cerebral characteristics in deficit schizophrenics, as defined by Carpenter. These results suggest a decrease in prefrontal perfusion at rest, which corresponds with neuropsychological data. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 7 | Prog. Neuropsychopharmacol. Biol. Psychiatry 2002 Apr 26: 481-5 |
| PMID | 11999898 |
| Title | Regional cerebral blood flow in deficit/nondeficit types of schizophrenia according to SDS criteria. |
| Abstract | A relationship between "hypofrontality" and a negative form of schizophrenia is commonly found. The Schedule for the Deficit Syndrome (SDS) provides specific criteria for assessing the presence of negative symptoms, their duration and whether the symptoms are primary or secondary. The purpose of our study was to compare the regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) at rest, in 62 deficit and nondeficit schizophrenic patients, according to the SDS criteria (French version). The deficit patients in our population were comparable to those described in the literature (stability of their negative symptoms with time, poor premorbid adjustment, duration of the illness, age at the first episode, etc.). No difference was found in the locoregional perfusion with respect to the DSM-III-R type of schizophrenia, the sex or the type of treatment received. The patients with a deficit form of schizophrenia showed a significant bilateral reduction in single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) perfusion in the right frontodorsolateral cortex (P=.0105) and the left frontodorsolateral cortex (P=.0004) compared with the nondeficit schizophrenic patients. The contribution of SDS seems to be helpful in distinguishing between significant cerebral characteristics in deficit schizophrenics, as defined by Carpenter. These results suggest a decrease in prefrontal perfusion at rest, which corresponds with neuropsychological data. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 8 | Neuropsychobiology 2002 -1 45: 186-90 |
| PMID | 12097807 |
| Title | Impact on Thai psychiatrists of passive dissemination of a clinical practice guideline on prescribing attitudes in treatment-resistant schizophrenia. |
| Abstract | This study aimed to determine the impact of a particular clinical practice guideline (CPG) following its passive dissemination on Thai psychiatrists' prescribing attitudes towards treatment-resistant schizophrenia (TRS). Two surveys were conducted before and after the dissemination of the CPG. Ninety-four questionnaires from the first survey and 84 from the second were analysed. Over 70% of the respondents were male. The mean age and duration of practice were 42.3 and 15.3 years, respectively. The respondents' characteristics were not significantly different in sex, age, years of practice, specialty, or clinical setting. In the first survey, the first three favoured interventions for TRS were switching to risperidone alone, switching to another conventional antipsychotic (CA), and adding carbamazepine to the on-going CA. In the second round, the first three interventions were switching to risperidone alone, switching to another CA, and switching to clozapine alone. Although there was a trend in the direction suggested by the CPG, there was no significant difference between the two surveys. The interventions chosen as first, second-, and third-line treatments were also not significantly different. Of 80 respondents who expressed their opinions on the CPG, 55, 15, and 10 stated that they knew, did not know, and were uncertain about the availability of a guideline, respectively. Of 55 respondents who knew about the availability of the guideline, 40 had read it. The mean (SDS) of the guideline acceptance and the impact of the guideline on the practice obtained from those 40 respondents were 70.9 (13.7) and 58.9 (19.6), respectively. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 9 | Eur. Psychiatry 2002 May 17: 155-62 |
| PMID | 12052576 |
| Title | Cognitive patterns in subtypes of schizophrenia. |
| Abstract | Because of the heterogeneity of schizophrenia, this study researched different cognitive patterns in distinct subtypes of schizophrenic patients. Thirty-five Diagnostic and Statistical Manual IV (DSM IV) schizophrenic patients and 35 healthy controls were included. Patients were categorized into deficit, disorganized and positive subtypes with the schedule for the deficit syndrome (SDS) and the positive and negative syndrome scale (PANSS). Executive/attentional functions were assessed with the modified card sorting test (MCST), a test of verbal fluency, the trail making test (TMT) and the Stroop color-word test (Stroop test). Episodic memory was explored through the California verbal learning test (CVLT). The positive subtype had some executive/attentional (fluency and Stroop tests) and mnesic performances in the normal range, suggesting the preservation of good cognitive skills. In contrast, the deficit and disorganized subtypes had major mnesic and executive/attentional dysfunctions compared to healthy subjects. The deficit subtype compared to the control group performed predominantly worse on the MCST and fluency, whereas the disorganized subtype had the lowest scores on the TMT and the Stroop test. This study showed distinct cognitive patterns in deficit, disorganized and positive patients in comparison with the controls, suggesting a heterogeneous cognitive dysfunction in schizophrenia. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 10 | Eur. Psychiatry 2002 May 17: 155-62 |
| PMID | 12052576 |
| Title | Cognitive patterns in subtypes of schizophrenia. |
| Abstract | Because of the heterogeneity of schizophrenia, this study researched different cognitive patterns in distinct subtypes of schizophrenic patients. Thirty-five Diagnostic and Statistical Manual IV (DSM IV) schizophrenic patients and 35 healthy controls were included. Patients were categorized into deficit, disorganized and positive subtypes with the schedule for the deficit syndrome (SDS) and the positive and negative syndrome scale (PANSS). Executive/attentional functions were assessed with the modified card sorting test (MCST), a test of verbal fluency, the trail making test (TMT) and the Stroop color-word test (Stroop test). Episodic memory was explored through the California verbal learning test (CVLT). The positive subtype had some executive/attentional (fluency and Stroop tests) and mnesic performances in the normal range, suggesting the preservation of good cognitive skills. In contrast, the deficit and disorganized subtypes had major mnesic and executive/attentional dysfunctions compared to healthy subjects. The deficit subtype compared to the control group performed predominantly worse on the MCST and fluency, whereas the disorganized subtype had the lowest scores on the TMT and the Stroop test. This study showed distinct cognitive patterns in deficit, disorganized and positive patients in comparison with the controls, suggesting a heterogeneous cognitive dysfunction in schizophrenia. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 11 | Arch. Gen. Psychiatry 2002 Apr 59: 337-45 |
| PMID | 11926934 |
| Title | Abnormalities in glucose regulation during antipsychotic treatment of schizophrenia. |
| Abstract | Hyperglycemia and type 2 diabetes mellitus are more common in schizophrenia than in the general population. Glucoregulatory abnormalities have also been associated with the use of antipsychotic medications themselves. While antipsychotics may increase adiposity, which can decrease insulin sensitivity, disease- and medication-related differences in glucose regulation might also occur independent of differences in adiposity. Modified oral glucose tolerance tests were performed in schizophrenic patients (n = 48) receiving clozapine, olanzapine, risperidone, or typical antipsychotics, and untreated healthy control subjects (n = 31), excluding subjects with diabetes and matching groups for adiposity and age. Plasma was sampled at 0 (fasting), 15, 45, and 75 minutes after glucose load. Significant time x treatment group interactions were detected for plasma glucose (F(12,222) = 4.89, P<.001) and insulin (F(12,171) = 2.10, P =.02) levels, with significant effects of treatment group on plasma glucose level at all time points. Olanzapine-treated patients had significant (1.0-1.5 SDS) glucose elevations at all time points, in comparison with patients receiving typical antipsychotics as well as untreated healthy control subjects. Clozapine-treated patients had significant (1.0-1.5 SDS) glucose elevations at fasting and 75 minutes after load, again in comparison with patients receiving typical antipsychotics and untreated control subjects. Risperidone-treated patients had elevations in fasting and postload glucose levels, but only in comparison with untreated healthy control subjects. No differences in mean plasma glucose level were detected when comparing risperidone-treated vs typical antipsychotic-treated patients and when comparing typical antipsychotic-treated patients vs untreated control subjects. Antipsychotic treatment of nondiabetic patients with schizophrenia can be associated with adverse effects on glucose regulation, which can vary in severity independent of adiposity and potentially increase long-term cardiovascular risk. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 12 | Arch. Gen. Psychiatry 2002 Apr 59: 337-45 |
| PMID | 11926934 |
| Title | Abnormalities in glucose regulation during antipsychotic treatment of schizophrenia. |
| Abstract | Hyperglycemia and type 2 diabetes mellitus are more common in schizophrenia than in the general population. Glucoregulatory abnormalities have also been associated with the use of antipsychotic medications themselves. While antipsychotics may increase adiposity, which can decrease insulin sensitivity, disease- and medication-related differences in glucose regulation might also occur independent of differences in adiposity. Modified oral glucose tolerance tests were performed in schizophrenic patients (n = 48) receiving clozapine, olanzapine, risperidone, or typical antipsychotics, and untreated healthy control subjects (n = 31), excluding subjects with diabetes and matching groups for adiposity and age. Plasma was sampled at 0 (fasting), 15, 45, and 75 minutes after glucose load. Significant time x treatment group interactions were detected for plasma glucose (F(12,222) = 4.89, P<.001) and insulin (F(12,171) = 2.10, P =.02) levels, with significant effects of treatment group on plasma glucose level at all time points. Olanzapine-treated patients had significant (1.0-1.5 SDS) glucose elevations at all time points, in comparison with patients receiving typical antipsychotics as well as untreated healthy control subjects. Clozapine-treated patients had significant (1.0-1.5 SDS) glucose elevations at fasting and 75 minutes after load, again in comparison with patients receiving typical antipsychotics and untreated control subjects. Risperidone-treated patients had elevations in fasting and postload glucose levels, but only in comparison with untreated healthy control subjects. No differences in mean plasma glucose level were detected when comparing risperidone-treated vs typical antipsychotic-treated patients and when comparing typical antipsychotic-treated patients vs untreated control subjects. Antipsychotic treatment of nondiabetic patients with schizophrenia can be associated with adverse effects on glucose regulation, which can vary in severity independent of adiposity and potentially increase long-term cardiovascular risk. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 13 | J Clin Exp Neuropsychol 2003 Feb 25: 79-93 |
| PMID | 12607174 |
| Title | Sensitivity and specificity of memory dysfunction in schizophrenia: a comparison with major depression. |
| Abstract | Fifty-three schizophrenic subjects were compared to 50 patients with major depression and 50 normal controls on measures of working memory, declarative memory and malingering. The schizophrenic group scored 1-2 SDS below controls on all measures, while depressive patients exposed only lesser deficits in working memory and free recall. The memory deficit of the schizophrenic subjects was disproportionately greater than their intellectual decline. Differences between clinical groups could not be explained by differences in IQ, clinical symptom load or demographic characteristics. This indicates that impaired memory is a particular sensitive symptom of schizophrenia and that the impairment is specific to the illness. Working memory failure was prominent in both clinical groups. The schizophrenic subjects displayed primarily an acquisition failure, while the depressed group showed retrieval difficulties. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 14 | J Clin Exp Neuropsychol 2003 Feb 25: 79-93 |
| PMID | 12607174 |
| Title | Sensitivity and specificity of memory dysfunction in schizophrenia: a comparison with major depression. |
| Abstract | Fifty-three schizophrenic subjects were compared to 50 patients with major depression and 50 normal controls on measures of working memory, declarative memory and malingering. The schizophrenic group scored 1-2 SDS below controls on all measures, while depressive patients exposed only lesser deficits in working memory and free recall. The memory deficit of the schizophrenic subjects was disproportionately greater than their intellectual decline. Differences between clinical groups could not be explained by differences in IQ, clinical symptom load or demographic characteristics. This indicates that impaired memory is a particular sensitive symptom of schizophrenia and that the impairment is specific to the illness. Working memory failure was prominent in both clinical groups. The schizophrenic subjects displayed primarily an acquisition failure, while the depressed group showed retrieval difficulties. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 15 | Eur Arch Psychiatry Clin Neurosci 2003 Oct 253: 221-7 |
| PMID | 14504990 |
| Title | Reexamination of the characteristics of the deficit schizophrenia patients. |
| Abstract | The aim of this study was to reexamine and compare the characteristics of the deficit and nondeficit schizophrenic patients. This cross-sectional study consisted of 62 in- and out-patients, 18-65 years of age, diagnosed with schizophrenia according to DSM-IV. The sociodemographic variables, premorbid adjustment, clinical course and general functioning level in the past five years were evaluated by utilizing the appropriate sections of Comprehensive Assessment of Symptoms and History (CASH). In addition, GAF, the Schedule for the Deficit Syndrome (SDS), Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS), Montgomery Asberg Depression Scale (MADRS), the Neurological Evaluation Scale (NES) and the Simpson Angus Extrapyramidal Side Effects (EPS) Rating Scale, Trail A and B, Verbal Fluency, Stroop, Block Design and Finger Tapper tests were administered. Using the SDS, 19 patients (30.6 %) were categorized as deficit; 43 (69.4 %) were categorized as nondeficit. The deficit patients were worse on the Functioning During Past Five Years score of CASH. The PANSS and MADRS mean scores were not significantly different between the two groups, except a higher level of negative symptoms observed in the deficit group. NES scores were also significantly higher in the deficit group. However, sociodemographic and other clinical variables, neurocognitive measures and EPS symptoms did not show any significant difference between the two groups. Our findings suggest that the deficit schizophrenia is a distinct subgroup comprised of patients who have more negative symptoms, neurological impairment and poor functioning which may have a common underlying pathology. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 16 | Eur Arch Psychiatry Clin Neurosci 2003 Oct 253: 221-7 |
| PMID | 14504990 |
| Title | Reexamination of the characteristics of the deficit schizophrenia patients. |
| Abstract | The aim of this study was to reexamine and compare the characteristics of the deficit and nondeficit schizophrenic patients. This cross-sectional study consisted of 62 in- and out-patients, 18-65 years of age, diagnosed with schizophrenia according to DSM-IV. The sociodemographic variables, premorbid adjustment, clinical course and general functioning level in the past five years were evaluated by utilizing the appropriate sections of Comprehensive Assessment of Symptoms and History (CASH). In addition, GAF, the Schedule for the Deficit Syndrome (SDS), Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS), Montgomery Asberg Depression Scale (MADRS), the Neurological Evaluation Scale (NES) and the Simpson Angus Extrapyramidal Side Effects (EPS) Rating Scale, Trail A and B, Verbal Fluency, Stroop, Block Design and Finger Tapper tests were administered. Using the SDS, 19 patients (30.6 %) were categorized as deficit; 43 (69.4 %) were categorized as nondeficit. The deficit patients were worse on the Functioning During Past Five Years score of CASH. The PANSS and MADRS mean scores were not significantly different between the two groups, except a higher level of negative symptoms observed in the deficit group. NES scores were also significantly higher in the deficit group. However, sociodemographic and other clinical variables, neurocognitive measures and EPS symptoms did not show any significant difference between the two groups. Our findings suggest that the deficit schizophrenia is a distinct subgroup comprised of patients who have more negative symptoms, neurological impairment and poor functioning which may have a common underlying pathology. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 17 | Turk Psikiyatri Derg 2003 -1 14: 255-62 |
| PMID | 14704927 |
| Title | [Comparison of regional cerebral blood flow in deficit and nondeficit schizophrenic patients]. |
| Abstract | Brain imaging techniques are commonly used to define changes in the structure and functions of the brain in schizophrenic patients. The relationships between brain images and the cluster of symptoms provide us with more information about heterogeneous forms of schizophrenia. The aim of this study is to compare the regional blood flow of deficit and nondeficit syndrome schizophrenic patients. Forty schizophrenic patients under the age of 65, without physical or neurological illness, mental retardation, a history of substance abuse, or ECT over the previous six months were included in the study. The Scale for the Assessment of Positive Symptoms, Scale for the Assessment of Negative Symptoms, UKU Side Effect Rating Scale, Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression and The Schedule for the Deficit Syndrome (SDS) were used to evaluate the patients. The regional cerebral blood flow was measured semiquantitatively by SPECT imaging using radiopharmaceutical Tc 99m-HMPAO. There was a significant reduction in the regional blood flow of deficit syndrome patients compared to nondeficit ones in the left frontal cortex (p= 0.002), right frontal cortex (p= 0.006) and right temporal cortex (p= 0.04). We suggest that dysfunctions in some neuroanatomic structures are related to deficit syndrome and the concept of deficit syndrome is important for understanding underlying pathophysiologic mechanisms. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 18 | Turk Psikiyatri Derg 2003 -1 14: 255-62 |
| PMID | 14704927 |
| Title | [Comparison of regional cerebral blood flow in deficit and nondeficit schizophrenic patients]. |
| Abstract | Brain imaging techniques are commonly used to define changes in the structure and functions of the brain in schizophrenic patients. The relationships between brain images and the cluster of symptoms provide us with more information about heterogeneous forms of schizophrenia. The aim of this study is to compare the regional blood flow of deficit and nondeficit syndrome schizophrenic patients. Forty schizophrenic patients under the age of 65, without physical or neurological illness, mental retardation, a history of substance abuse, or ECT over the previous six months were included in the study. The Scale for the Assessment of Positive Symptoms, Scale for the Assessment of Negative Symptoms, UKU Side Effect Rating Scale, Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression and The Schedule for the Deficit Syndrome (SDS) were used to evaluate the patients. The regional cerebral blood flow was measured semiquantitatively by SPECT imaging using radiopharmaceutical Tc 99m-HMPAO. There was a significant reduction in the regional blood flow of deficit syndrome patients compared to nondeficit ones in the left frontal cortex (p= 0.002), right frontal cortex (p= 0.006) and right temporal cortex (p= 0.04). We suggest that dysfunctions in some neuroanatomic structures are related to deficit syndrome and the concept of deficit syndrome is important for understanding underlying pathophysiologic mechanisms. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 19 | Schizophr. Res. 2003 Dec 65: 125-37 |
| PMID | 14630305 |
| Title | Neurocognitive, social, and emotional dysfunction in deficit syndrome schizophrenia. |
| Abstract | The deficit syndrome is a promising distinction within schizophrenia that requires further validation. This study examined the replicability of differences in clinical symptoms, neurocognitive functioning, affect perception, and social functioning previously reported among deficit (n=15) and nondeficit syndrome (n=30) schizophrenia patients classified according to the Schedule for the Deficit Syndrome (SDS; Psychiatry Res. 30 (1989) 119) and nonpatient controls (n=41). Additionally, participants completed self-report affective trait measures of positive affectivity, negative affectivity, and social anhedonia to examine the deficit syndrome concept of diminished emotional range. We were able to replicate symptom profiles and neurocognitive and social functioning impairments in deficit vs. nondeficit patients, but did not find more severe affect perception impairment in deficit vs. nondeficit patients as previously reported. Regarding range of subjectively experienced emotion, deficit patients reported lower trait positive affectivity and marginally higher social anhedonia than nondeficit patients and controls, but also reported elevations in negative affectivity that were similar to nondeficit patients as compared to controls. While replication of patterns of impairment across multiple domains of functioning supports the validity of the deficit syndrome, results also suggest that SDS-defined deficit patients may be characterized by a relative reduction in the tendency or ability to experience positive emotions, rather than a pervasive diminution in the range of emotional experience. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 20 | Schizophr. Res. 2004 Jul 69: 55-65 |
| PMID | 15145471 |
| Title | Olfactory identification and WAIS-R performance in deficit and nondeficit schizophrenia. |
| Abstract | An expanding database supports the notion that the deficit syndrome (DS) is a discrete condition within schizophrenia and recent data argues that Smell Identification Deficits (SID) may have a primary relationship with its pathophysiology. If so, then the relationship of University of Pennsylvania Smell Identification Test (UPSIT) scores with other neurocognitive measures in DS patients may point to the neural substrate of the deficit syndrome. We examined the relationship of UPSIT scores and Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Revised (WAIS-R) performance in 46 DSM-IV schizophrenia patients. The Schedule for the Deficit Syndrome (SDS) interview was used to subgroup the sample into 13 DS and 33 nondeficit syndrome (NDS) patients. DS and NDS groups had similar mean ages, age of onset, and GAF scores, but DS patients had fewer years of education. DS and NDS patients also did not differ in full scale, verbal or performance IQ or in any WAIS-R subtest. However, UPSIT scores were significantly worse in the DS patients, most of whom met criteria for a clinically meaningful olfactory impairment. In DS patients, UPSIT scores were significantly correlated with Performance IQ, Block Design, and Object Assembly, all of which are associated with complex visual-motor organizational function thought to be mediated by parietal circuitry. UPSIT scores in NDS patients were significantly related with Vocabulary, Similarities, and Digit Symbol subtests, which are indicative of verbal functioning. These preliminary data support previous findings suggesting that in addition to frontal neuropsychological abnormalities, DS patients may have greater performance impairments on tasks associated with parietal functioning. Our findings furthermore suggest that the parietal circuitry may be a conspicuous substrate for impaired odor identification ability in these patients. The lesser abnormalities in UPSIT ability in NDS patients may be attributed to verbal ability. These data are preliminary and further investigations with larger samples are needed to support our findings. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 21 | J Affect Disord 2004 Sep 81: 211-22 |
| PMID | 15337325 |
| Title | Family caregiving in depression: impact on caregivers' daily life, distress, and help seeking. |
| Abstract | Attention to caregiving consequences has been mainly restricted to schizophrenia, although studies suggest that relatives of depressed patients also experience considerable distress. These studies, however, were conducted on small samples or with nonvalidated instruments. In our study, the caregiving consequences of 260 spouses and relatives of depressed patients were assessed with a well-validated 31-item questionnaire, the Involvement Evaluation Questionnaire (IEQ). The IEQ was mailed to spouses and relatives of patients with major depression, dysthymic disorder, or other depressive disorders. Other instruments used were the Ways of Coping Checklist (WCC), a Dutch Social Support Questionnaire, and the Zung Self-rating Depression Scale (SDS). About 25-50% of caregivers worried about the patient's general health, treatment, safety, and future. They had to urge the patient to undertake activities, or took over tasks. There were relational strains, and they felt burdened, especially when the patient was in an acute phase. Caregivers often felt distressed and had to visit a (mental) health practitioner. Also, children were affected; caregivers reported high levels of difficult behavior, loss of appetite, sleeplessness, less playing, and less attention at school. Caregiving consequences occur less often than in schizophrenia, but the patterns are quite comparable. Caregiving consequences in depression occur frequently and cause distress in caregivers and patient's children. Attention should be paid to support relatives and spouses of depressed patients. Special attention should be paid to patient's children. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 22 | Biol. Psychiatry 2005 Nov 58: 705-12 |
| PMID | 16023084 |
| Title | Neurocognitive profile in adolescents with early-onset schizophrenia: clinical correlates. |
| Abstract | Neurocognitive impairments have been documented in adolescents with early-onset schizophrenia (EOS; onset by age 18) and are important treatment targets. Information concerning the severity, pattern, and clinical correlates of these deficits in EOS remains limited. Tests assessing motor skills, attention, memory, visuospatial abilities and executive functioning were administered to 54 clinically stabilized adolescents with EOS and 52 age- and sex-matched healthy controls. Childhood-onset patients (onset by age 13) were compared to those with an adolescent onset of illness. Patients' neurocognitive profiles were compared to those of controls. Relationships between neurocognitive deficits and demographic and clinical characteristics were explored. Neurocognitive profiles did not differ between childhood- and adolescent-onset participants. Patients showed a generalized neurocognitive deficit of 2.0 SDS compared to controls, with relative deficit in executive functioning and relative sparing of language and visuospatial abilities. Degree of generalized neurocognitive impairment was associated with premorbid adjustment and negative symptom severity (Adjusted R(2) = .39). Results document both a significant generalized deficit and a relative deficit of executive functioning in adolescents with EOS. The overall pattern is similar to that observed in severely ill first-episode adult patients. The impairments across multiple neurocognitive domains suggest widespread brain dysfunction in EOS. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 23 | J Psychiatr Res 2005 Jul 39: 409-14 |
| PMID | 15804391 |
| Title | Anxiety disorders in outpatients with schizophrenia: prevalence and impact on the subjective quality of life. |
| Abstract | To describe the prevalence of comorbid lifetime anxiety disorders in outpatients with schizophrenia and to compare the subjective quality of life of patients with and without comorbid anxiety disorders. Fifty-three outpatients were recruited. They were interviewed with the Anxiety Disorders section of the SCID for DSM-IV. Quality of life was assessed with the Sheehan disability scale (SDS). Specific prevalences of anxiety comorbidity were: social phobia (17%), OCD (15.1%), GAD (9.4%), anxiety disorder NOS (7.5%), panic disorder (5.7%), specific phobia (5.7%), PTSD (3.8%), and agoraphobia (1.9%). schizophrenic patients with comorbid anxiety disorder (41.5%) showed significantly higher scores in global scale (p=0.005), work subscale (p=0.007), and social life subscale (p=0.003) of the SDS than their counterparts without comorbid conditions. Anxiety disorders may impose an additional burden to patients with schizophrenia, resulting in further decline in their subjective quality of life. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 24 | J Psychiatr Res 2005 Jul 39: 409-14 |
| PMID | 15804391 |
| Title | Anxiety disorders in outpatients with schizophrenia: prevalence and impact on the subjective quality of life. |
| Abstract | To describe the prevalence of comorbid lifetime anxiety disorders in outpatients with schizophrenia and to compare the subjective quality of life of patients with and without comorbid anxiety disorders. Fifty-three outpatients were recruited. They were interviewed with the Anxiety Disorders section of the SCID for DSM-IV. Quality of life was assessed with the Sheehan disability scale (SDS). Specific prevalences of anxiety comorbidity were: social phobia (17%), OCD (15.1%), GAD (9.4%), anxiety disorder NOS (7.5%), panic disorder (5.7%), specific phobia (5.7%), PTSD (3.8%), and agoraphobia (1.9%). schizophrenic patients with comorbid anxiety disorder (41.5%) showed significantly higher scores in global scale (p=0.005), work subscale (p=0.007), and social life subscale (p=0.003) of the SDS than their counterparts without comorbid conditions. Anxiety disorders may impose an additional burden to patients with schizophrenia, resulting in further decline in their subjective quality of life. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 25 | J Child Adolesc Psychopharmacol 2005 Apr 15: 249-58 |
| PMID | 15910209 |
| Title | Subjective distress related to side effects and subjective well-being in first admitted adolescents with early-onset psychosis treated with atypical antipsychotics. |
| Abstract | Side effects (SE) of antipsychotics are considered a major source of subjective discomfort. The aim of this pilot study was to evaluate the subjective distress-related to different SE and its association with subjective well-being in a sample of adolescents treated with atypical antipsychotics. Subjects enrolled were first hospitalized adolescent inpatients with diagnoses of Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th edition (DSM-IV) schizophrenia, schizophreniform, or schizoaffective disorder. Subjects' Clinical Global Impression-Severity (CGI-S) and subjective well-being (SWN-K, BfS) were evaluated at baseline, week 2, and week 6. Side effects (UKU) and subjective distress under SE (Subjective Distress Scale, SDS) were evaluated at weeks 2 and 6. Twenty adolescents were included. Almost all subjects suffered from at least one distressing SE at both follow-up time points. The mean number of distressing SE decreased from weeks 2 to 6. The most prevalent distressing SE were psychic SE and weight gain. There was an association between distress related to psychic and neurological SE and negative subjective wellbeing (r = 0.60-0.70). Subjective distress with these SE, especially neurological SE at both time points and sedation-increased sleep at week 6, did not correspond to clinician's severity ratings. Clinicians may overlook distress by only judging the severity of SE objectively in the treatment with atypical antipsychotics, leading to negative subjective well-being and a high rate of nonadherence to treatment. Therefore, it is recommended to discuss the severity of, and distress with, SE independently with patients. Future studies should focus on distress related to neurological SE, sedation, and weight gain. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 26 | Schizophr. Res. 2005 Jan 72: 109-22 |
| PMID | 15560956 |
| Title | GABAergic dysfunction in schizophrenia and mood disorders as reflected by decreased levels of glutamic acid decarboxylase 65 and 67 kDa and Reelin proteins in cerebellum. |
| Abstract | Glutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD) is the rate limiting enzyme responsible for conversion of glutamate to gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) regulating levels of glutamate and GABA in the mammalian brain. Reelin is an extracellular matrix protein that helps in normal lamination of the embryonic brain and subserves synaptic plasticity in adult brain. Both GAD and Reelin are colocalized to the same GABAergic interneurons in several brain sites. We hypothesized that levels of GAD and Reelin would be altered in cerebellum of subjects with schizophrenia and mood disorders differentially vs. controls. We employed SDS-PAGE and Western blotting to measure levels of GAD isomers 65 and 67 kDa and Reelin isoforms 410-, 330- and 180-kDa proteins as well as beta-actin in cerebellum of subjects with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and major depression vs. controls (N = 15 per group). GAD 65- and 67-kDa levels were decreased significantly in bipolar, depressed and schizophrenic subjects (p < 0.05) vs. controls. Reelin 410- and 180-kDa proteins decreased significantly (p < 0.05) in bipolar subjects vs. controls. Reelin 180 kDa was decreased significantly (p < 0.05) in schizophrenics vs. controls. beta-Actin levels did not vary significantly between groups. There were no significant effects of confounding variables on levels of various proteins. This study demonstrates for the first time significant deficits in GABAergic markers Reelin and GAD 65 and 67 proteins in bipolar subjects and global deficits in the latter proteins in schizophrenia and mood disorders, accounting for the reported alterations in CSF/plasma levels of glutamate and GABA in these disorders. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 27 | Schizophr. Res. 2005 Jan 72: 109-22 |
| PMID | 15560956 |
| Title | GABAergic dysfunction in schizophrenia and mood disorders as reflected by decreased levels of glutamic acid decarboxylase 65 and 67 kDa and Reelin proteins in cerebellum. |
| Abstract | Glutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD) is the rate limiting enzyme responsible for conversion of glutamate to gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) regulating levels of glutamate and GABA in the mammalian brain. Reelin is an extracellular matrix protein that helps in normal lamination of the embryonic brain and subserves synaptic plasticity in adult brain. Both GAD and Reelin are colocalized to the same GABAergic interneurons in several brain sites. We hypothesized that levels of GAD and Reelin would be altered in cerebellum of subjects with schizophrenia and mood disorders differentially vs. controls. We employed SDS-PAGE and Western blotting to measure levels of GAD isomers 65 and 67 kDa and Reelin isoforms 410-, 330- and 180-kDa proteins as well as beta-actin in cerebellum of subjects with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and major depression vs. controls (N = 15 per group). GAD 65- and 67-kDa levels were decreased significantly in bipolar, depressed and schizophrenic subjects (p < 0.05) vs. controls. Reelin 410- and 180-kDa proteins decreased significantly (p < 0.05) in bipolar subjects vs. controls. Reelin 180 kDa was decreased significantly (p < 0.05) in schizophrenics vs. controls. beta-Actin levels did not vary significantly between groups. There were no significant effects of confounding variables on levels of various proteins. This study demonstrates for the first time significant deficits in GABAergic markers Reelin and GAD 65 and 67 proteins in bipolar subjects and global deficits in the latter proteins in schizophrenia and mood disorders, accounting for the reported alterations in CSF/plasma levels of glutamate and GABA in these disorders. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 28 | Schizophr. Res. 2005 Jan 72: 109-22 |
| PMID | 15560956 |
| Title | GABAergic dysfunction in schizophrenia and mood disorders as reflected by decreased levels of glutamic acid decarboxylase 65 and 67 kDa and Reelin proteins in cerebellum. |
| Abstract | Glutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD) is the rate limiting enzyme responsible for conversion of glutamate to gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) regulating levels of glutamate and GABA in the mammalian brain. Reelin is an extracellular matrix protein that helps in normal lamination of the embryonic brain and subserves synaptic plasticity in adult brain. Both GAD and Reelin are colocalized to the same GABAergic interneurons in several brain sites. We hypothesized that levels of GAD and Reelin would be altered in cerebellum of subjects with schizophrenia and mood disorders differentially vs. controls. We employed SDS-PAGE and Western blotting to measure levels of GAD isomers 65 and 67 kDa and Reelin isoforms 410-, 330- and 180-kDa proteins as well as beta-actin in cerebellum of subjects with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and major depression vs. controls (N = 15 per group). GAD 65- and 67-kDa levels were decreased significantly in bipolar, depressed and schizophrenic subjects (p < 0.05) vs. controls. Reelin 410- and 180-kDa proteins decreased significantly (p < 0.05) in bipolar subjects vs. controls. Reelin 180 kDa was decreased significantly (p < 0.05) in schizophrenics vs. controls. beta-Actin levels did not vary significantly between groups. There were no significant effects of confounding variables on levels of various proteins. This study demonstrates for the first time significant deficits in GABAergic markers Reelin and GAD 65 and 67 proteins in bipolar subjects and global deficits in the latter proteins in schizophrenia and mood disorders, accounting for the reported alterations in CSF/plasma levels of glutamate and GABA in these disorders. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 29 | Behav Brain Funct 2006 -1 2: 42 |
| PMID | 17173666 |
| Title | Lack of association between COMT gene and deficit/nondeficit schizophrenia. |
| Abstract | The dopamine dysregulation hypothesis of schizophrenia posits that positive, negative and cognitive symptoms correlate with cortical/subcortical imbalances in dopaminergic transmission. A functional polymorphism (Val158Met) in the catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) gene is implicated in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia by its effect on prefrontal dopamine transmission, and its unique impact on prefrontal cognitive and behavioral phenotypes. Cognitive impairments and negative symptoms in schizophrenia have been hypothesized to be associated with hypodopaminergic states. schizophrenia patients with the deficit syndrome are characterized by primary enduring negative symptoms, impairment on neurocognitive tasks sensitive to frontal and parietal cortical functioning, and poorer functional outcome compared to non-deficit patients. Eighty-six schizophrenia cases that met DSM-IV criteria for schizophrenia were recruited. Additional categorization into deficit and nondeficit syndrome was performed using the Schedule for the Deficit Syndrome (SDS). A healthy comparison group (n = 50) matched to cases on age and ethnicity was recruited. Allele and genotype frequencies of the Val158Met polymorphism were compared among healthy controls, and schizophrenia cases with the deficit (n = 21), and nondeficit syndrome (n = 65). There was a significant difference in Val/Val genotype frequencies between schizophrenia cases (combined deficit/nondeficit) and healthy controls (p = 0.004). No significant differences in allele or genotype frequencies were observed between deficit and nondeficit cases. Results from this preliminary analysis failed to show an effect of COMT gene on deficit schizophrenia. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 30 | Turk Psikiyatri Derg 2006 -1 17: 115-27 |
| PMID | 16755412 |
| Title | [Reliability and validity of the schedule for deficit syndrome in schizophrenia]. |
| Abstract | The Schedule for Deficit Syndrome (SDS) is an instrument for categorizing schizophrenic patients as those with and without deficit syndrome. This schedule has been translated and adapted into the Turkish language in order to study its reliability and validity. 30 male schizophrenic patients were included in the study. The patients had been ill for a long period of time and the course was continuous. The patients were assessed by two different raters using the SDS as a means of testing its reliability. A third rater assessed the same group of patients using the BPRS to test the validity of the SDS. The raters using the SDS demonstrated good inter-rater reliability for the categorization of patients with and without deficit syndrome, as well as for rating global severity (kappa: 0.88-0.93) and individual negative symptoms (kappa: 0.51-0.61). The schedule was also found to have a high validity for both categorization and measuring individual negative symptoms. (U: 60.0, P: 0.03). The results demonstrated that the Turkish version of the SDS would be a reliable and valid instrument that could be used in the study of schizophrenia. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 31 | Subst Use Misuse 2006 -1 41: 743-50 |
| PMID | 16603458 |
| Title | Validity and consistency of self-reports regarding substance use in general research volunteers, including regular cannabis users and schizophrenia patients. |
| Abstract | This study investigated the validity of self-reports of substance use in 69 low-level substance users from the general community of Perth, Australia, volunteering for electrophysiological research, between 2002 and 2003. The participants included regular cannabis users and schizophrenia patients. Self-reports of recent use (last 24 hours) highly agreed with urine screen results (kappa = 0.91). Self-reports of past use (lifetime and last 12 months) had poor-moderate consistency based on correlations among dependence (measured with SDS, FTND, SMAST, CAGE), frequency, and use duration. Therefore, under some conditions, self-reports are valid for recent use and only moderately consistent for past substance use in general research participants. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 32 | Turk Psikiyatri Derg 2006 -1 17: 115-27 |
| PMID | 16755412 |
| Title | [Reliability and validity of the schedule for deficit syndrome in schizophrenia]. |
| Abstract | The Schedule for Deficit Syndrome (SDS) is an instrument for categorizing schizophrenic patients as those with and without deficit syndrome. This schedule has been translated and adapted into the Turkish language in order to study its reliability and validity. 30 male schizophrenic patients were included in the study. The patients had been ill for a long period of time and the course was continuous. The patients were assessed by two different raters using the SDS as a means of testing its reliability. A third rater assessed the same group of patients using the BPRS to test the validity of the SDS. The raters using the SDS demonstrated good inter-rater reliability for the categorization of patients with and without deficit syndrome, as well as for rating global severity (kappa: 0.88-0.93) and individual negative symptoms (kappa: 0.51-0.61). The schedule was also found to have a high validity for both categorization and measuring individual negative symptoms. (U: 60.0, P: 0.03). The results demonstrated that the Turkish version of the SDS would be a reliable and valid instrument that could be used in the study of schizophrenia. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 33 | Schizophr. Res. 2006 Sep 86: 226-33 |
| PMID | 16750346 |
| Title | Depressive symptom patterns in patients with chronic schizophrenia and subsyndromal depression. |
| Abstract | Since subsyndromal depressive symptoms (SDS) are prevalent, under-recognized and clinically important problems in patients with schizophrenia, as well as in the elderly, the association and correlates of SDS in mid-life and older age patients with schizophrenia deserves more investigation. The purpose of this study is to learn more about the occurrence, pattern of symptoms and associated features of subsyndromal depressive symptoms in patients with chronic schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder. The first 165 participants from the "Citalopram Augmentation in Older Adults with Psychoses" (NIH RO1 # 63931) study comprised the sample. Inclusion criteria included: age > or =40, DSM-IV diagnosis of schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder, outpatient status, >2 DSM-IV symptoms of MDE and Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D) score > or =8. Depressive symptoms were assessed using the 17-item version of the HAM-D and the Calgary Depression Rating Scale (CDRS). The most prevalent symptoms cut across several domains of the depressive syndrome: psychological (e.g., depressed mood, depressed appearance, psychic anxiety); cognitive (e.g., guilt, hopelessness, self depreciation, loss of insight); somatic (insomnia, anorexia, loss of libido, somatic anxiety); psychomotor (e.g., retardation and agitation) and functional (diminished work and activities). Participants diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder appeared more depressed, endorsed more intense "guilty ideas of reference" and had higher total CDRS scores than patients diagnosed with schizophrenia. This study confirms the high prevalence of depressive symptoms in middle-aged and older persons with schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder who were selected on the basis of having subsyndromal symptoms of depression. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 34 | Proteomics 2006 Jun 6: 3414-25 |
| PMID | 16637010 |
| Title | Proteomic analysis of the anterior cingulate cortex in the major psychiatric disorders: Evidence for disease-associated changes. |
| Abstract | Abnormalities of the anterior cingulate cortex have previously been described in schizophrenia, major depressive disorder and bipolar disorder. In this study 2-DE was performed followed by mass spectrometric sequencing to identify disease-specific protein changes within the anterior cingulate cortex in these psychiatric disorders. The 2-DE system comprised IPGs 4-7 and 6-9 in the first, IEF dimension and SDS-PAGE in the second dimension. Resultant protein spots were compared between control and disease groups. Statistical analysis indicated that 35 spots were differentially expressed in one or more groups. Proteins comprising 26 of these spots were identified by mass spectroscopy. These represented 19 distinct proteins; aconitate hydratase, malate dehydrogenase, fructose bisphosphate aldolase A, ATP synthase, succinyl CoA ketoacid transferase, carbonic anhydrase, alpha- and beta-tubulin, dihydropyrimidinase-related protein-1 and -2, neuronal protein 25, trypsin precursor, glutamate dehydrogenase, glutamine synthetase, sorcin, vacuolar ATPase, creatine kinase, albumin and guanine nucleotide binding protein beta subunit. All but three of these proteins have previously been associated with the major psychiatric disorders. These findings provide support for the view that cytoskeletal and mitochondrial dysfunction are important components of the neuropathology of the major psychiatric disorders. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 35 | Addiction 2007 Jan 102: 35-40 |
| PMID | 17207121 |
| Title | The reliability and validity of the Severity of Dependence Scale for detecting cannabis dependence in psychosis. |
| Abstract | To determine the reliability and validity of the Severity of Dependence Scale (SDS) for detecting cannabis dependence in a large sample of in-patients with a schizophrenia spectrum disorder. Cross-sectional study. Participants were 153 in-patients with a schizophrenia spectrum disorder in Brisbane, Australia. Participants were administered the SDS for cannabis dependence in the past 12 months. The presence of Diagnostic and Statistical Manual Version-IV (DSM-IV) cannabis dependence in the previous 12 months was assessed using the Comprehensive International Diagnostic Interview (CIDI). The SDS had high levels of internal consistency and strong construct and concurrent validity. Individuals with a score of >or = 2 on the SDS were nearly 30 times more likely to have DSM-IV cannabis dependence. The SDS was the strongest predictor of DSM-IV cannabis dependence after controlling for other predictor variables. The SDS is a brief, valid and reliable screen for cannabis dependence among people with psychosis. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 36 | Med Clin (Barc) 2007 Jun 129: 91-3 |
| PMID | 17594858 |
| Title | [Adaptation and validation into Spanish of Schedule for the Deficit Syndrome]. |
| Abstract | schizophrenia is a high prevalent disorder associated with huge economic and sanitary costs. Negative symptoms represent the main prognostic factors, thus to identify them is important to design effective guidelines of treatment. The Schedule for the Deficit Syndrome (SDS) is the only validated method to evaluate those symptoms as primary and stable. We propose its adaptation and validation into Spanish. Patients diagnosed of schizophrenia attended at 2 different hospitals were evaluated with SDS (Spanish version) and PANSS (Positive and Negative Symptom Scale). Stable patients were reevaluated 6 months later. One rater acted as gold standard while two 2 raters, naïve to SDS, evaluated patients too. Twenty-one patients were evaluated (15 men). Raters agreed ranged from kappa = 0.79 to kappa = 0.89 with gold standard and kappa = 0.90 between them. Kappa ranged from 0.60-0.70 for severity criteria and 0.78-0.90 for primary criteria. Temporal stability at 6 months between raters was kappa = 0.72 and 0.87. We also evaluated interclass correlation index and homogeneity of construct. After a brief training with the Spanish version of SDS, is fast and feasible to categorize patients into deficit or non-deficit forms of schizophrenia. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 37 | Georgian Med News 2007 Sep -1: 17-21 |
| PMID | 17984557 |
| Title | [Clinical and experimental-psychological data of post-schizophrenic depression VG]. |
| Abstract | Since depressive symptoms (SDS) are prevalent under-recognized and clinically important problems in patients with schizophrenia, the pattern of symptoms and associated features of depressive symptoms, as well, as inclusion of psychopathology and neurodynemic variations in personality structure of patients with chronic schizophrenia deserve more investigation. The aim of the research was to identify clinical and experimental-psychological features of post-schizophrenic depression. The longitudinal study has been designed to investigate patients with paranoid schizophrenia. As a result of the careful clinical and psychological analyses due to psychopathology we defined four types of depression. From which two types of depression--agitated and asthenic prevailed in active phase of schizophrenia and remained two hypochondriac and apathyc mainly occurred during stabilization. This finding would have prognostic value. The authors examined personality changes leaded by cognitive symptoms and specified psychopathological and neurodynamical input in alteration of personality structure with word association experiment by A.D. Zurabashvili. As the semantics of trigger words became more complex the qualitative impairment deepened. Lower pathological associations have overcome scanty logical thinking and fluctuation of latency time since thought blocking became prominent. SSRI (Fevarin, Rexetin) appeared especially effective in treatment of certain type of post-schizophrenic depression. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 38 | Psychiatry Clin. Neurosci. 2007 Oct 61: 558-63 |
| PMID | 17875036 |
| Title | Factors influencing subjective sleepiness in patients with obstructive sleep apnea syndrome. |
| Abstract | The aim of the present paper was to clarify the factors influencing subjective daytime sleepiness in patients with obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS). Subjects included 230 adult male OSAS patients aged 20-73 years. Single and multiple linear regression analyses were performed to estimate the association between the Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS) and the following variables: Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI), Self-Rating Depression Scale (SDS), age, body mass index (BMI), sleep duration during the preceding month and apnea-hypopnea index (AHI). Single linear regression analysis showed that age had a negative association with ESS score, while BMI, AHI, SDS, hypochondriasis (Hs), hysteria, psychopathic deviant, psychasthenia, schizophrenia and hypomania on the MMPI had a positive association with ESS score. However, the other remaining parameters such as nocturnal sleep duration during the preceding month, depression, masculinity-femininity, paranoia, social introversion on the MMPI had no statistical association with ESS score. Multiple linear regression analysis with stepwise elimination method was applied to choose the significant factors associated with ESS. It was found that three variables including age, AHI and Hs scores were independent factors influencing ESS score. The R(2) for the model was 0.14, suggesting that these factors account for 14% of possible variance of subjective daytime sleepiness of OSAS patients. These results suggest that subjective daytime sleepiness in patients with OSAS may be influenced not only by the severity of respiratory disorder indices but also by certain personality characteristics affecting Hs score and by age. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 39 | Schizophr. Res. 2007 Jul 93: 169-77 |
| PMID | 17433629 |
| Title | Validity of a 'proxy' for the deficit syndrome derived from the Positive And Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS). |
| Abstract | schizophrenia patients with the deficit syndrome (DS) may represent a homogeneous subgroup. To increase the practicability of diagnosing the DS, Kirkpatrick et al. [Kirkpatrick, B., Buchanan, RW., Breier, A. Carpenter, WT., 1993. Case identification and stability of the deficit syndrome of schizophrenia. Psychiatry Res. 47, 47-56.] proposed the use of a 'proxy' case identification tool using standardized symptom ratings instead of the Schedule for the Deficit Syndrome (SDS) which requires an independent clinical assessment. The Proxy for the Deficit Syndrome (PDS) is based on the extraction of symptoms that are essentially equivalent or overlap substantially with the restricted affect and diminished emotional range on the SDS. Kirkpatrick et al. [Kirkpatrick, B., Buchanan, RW., Breier, A. Carpenter, WT., 1993. Case identification and stability of the deficit syndrome of schizophrenia. Psychiatry Res. 47, 47-56.] reported good sensitivity and specificity in a comparison of SDS and PDS assessments among 100 chronic schizophrenia outpatients. The present investigation involves the comparison of the deficit syndrome as assessed by the "gold standard" Schedule for the Deficit Syndrome with the ratings of the same symptoms embodied in the "proxy instrument" the PANSS, within the same group of 156 inpatients. Forty-four patients were assessed by the SDS to have the deficit syndrome. Patients with and without the DS, as defined by the SDS, did not differ for age, education, age at illness onset and duration of illness. The two main 'proxy' measures PDS1 and PDS2 discriminated across the SDS groups. The direct dichotomous comparison of the actual SDS and the 'proxy' derived PDS groups demonstrated good specificity (78.6% and 79.5%) and moderate to very good sensitivity (61.4% and 86.4%) and there was a moderately low rate of false positive cases (21.4% and 20.5%). For the two main 'proxy' measures (PDS1 and PDS2) kappas were .38 and .59, representing poor to good agreement. In our sample of rigorously diagnosed schizophrenia inpatients, the use of a 'proxy' case identification tool for the deficit syndrome would appear to be a viable alternative in identifying a subgroup of schizophrenia patients with the deficit syndrome when the use of the actual SDS is not feasible. Further study is indicated before the PDS as extracted from the PANSS can be used in lieu of the SDS for identifying patients with this syndrome. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 40 | Georgian Med News 2007 Sep -1: 17-21 |
| PMID | 17984557 |
| Title | [Clinical and experimental-psychological data of post-schizophrenic depression VG]. |
| Abstract | Since depressive symptoms (SDS) are prevalent under-recognized and clinically important problems in patients with schizophrenia, the pattern of symptoms and associated features of depressive symptoms, as well, as inclusion of psychopathology and neurodynemic variations in personality structure of patients with chronic schizophrenia deserve more investigation. The aim of the research was to identify clinical and experimental-psychological features of post-schizophrenic depression. The longitudinal study has been designed to investigate patients with paranoid schizophrenia. As a result of the careful clinical and psychological analyses due to psychopathology we defined four types of depression. From which two types of depression--agitated and asthenic prevailed in active phase of schizophrenia and remained two hypochondriac and apathyc mainly occurred during stabilization. This finding would have prognostic value. The authors examined personality changes leaded by cognitive symptoms and specified psychopathological and neurodynamical input in alteration of personality structure with word association experiment by A.D. Zurabashvili. As the semantics of trigger words became more complex the qualitative impairment deepened. Lower pathological associations have overcome scanty logical thinking and fluctuation of latency time since thought blocking became prominent. SSRI (Fevarin, Rexetin) appeared especially effective in treatment of certain type of post-schizophrenic depression. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 41 | Psychiatry Res 2008 Mar 158: 256-9 |
| PMID | 18206248 |
| Title | A two-factor structure for the Schedule for the Deficit Syndrome in schizophrenia. |
| Abstract | The deficit subtype is hypothesized to constitute a homogeneous subgroup of schizophrenia patients. The Schedule for the Deficit Syndrome (SDS) was developed to categorize schizophrenia patients into deficit and non-deficit subtypes. Only one report, however, has suggested the use of a two-factor SDS. The present study used a two-factor SDS and examined the relationships between the factors and the demographic and clinical variables in deficit-type schizophrenia patients. Principal component analysis was performed on data obtained from 70 schizophrenia patients with the deficit syndrome. The two-factor SDS was replicated. Factor 1, avolition, was significantly correlated only with the relational disorder domain, which consisted of two negative items from the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale. Factor 2, poor emotional expression, was significantly correlated with both the negative symptom domain, which consisted of three negative items, and the relational disorder domain. Since the SDS has two factors, there appear to be different underlying processes for these two factors. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 42 | Schizophr. Res. 2009 Jul 112: 46-53 |
| PMID | 19487109 |
| Title | Abnormal expression of myelination genes and alterations in white matter fractional anisotropy following prenatal viral influenza infection at E16 in mice. |
| Abstract | Prenatal viral infection has been associated with the development of schizophrenia and autism. Our laboratory has previously shown that viral infection causes deleterious effects on brain structure and function in mouse offspring following late first trimester (E9) and late second trimester (E18) administration of influenza virus. We hypothesized that middle second trimester infection (E16) in mice may lead to a different pattern of brain gene expression and structural defects in the developing offspring. C57BL6 mice were infected on E16 with a sublethal dose of human influenza virus or sham-infected using vehicle solution. Male offspring of the infected mice were collected at P0, P14, P35, and P56, their brains removed and cerebella dissected and flash frozen. Microarray, DTI and MRI scanning, as well as qRT-PCR and SDS-PAGE and western blotting analyses were performed to detect differences in gene expression and brain atrophy. Expression of several genes associated with myelination, including Mbp, Mag, and Plp1 were found to be altered, as were protein levels of Mbp, Mag, and DM20. Brain imaging revealed significant atrophy in cerebellum at P14, reduced fractional anisotropy in white matter of the right internal capsule at P0, and increased fractional anisotropy in white matter in corpus callosum at P14 and right middle cerebellar peduncle at P56. We propose that maternal infection in mouse impacts myelination genes. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 43 | Postepy Hig Med Dosw (Online) 2009 -1 63: 549-63 |
| PMID | 19940332 |
| Title | [Proteomic analysis of protein profiles in some pathological stages of the human organism]. |
| Abstract | Two-dimensional gel electrophoresis (2-DE) is a widely used method for separation of the proteins of a proteome and it enables their detection in a large concentration range. Sample preparation for isoelectric focusing and SDS-PAGE electrophoresis as well as spot visualization determines the quality of the obtained protein maps. Computer analysis of the proteome maps allows comparison and detection differences in protein profiles. In combination with mass spectrometry (MS) it enables the identification of a single protein. Low-abundance proteins of physiological body fluids are considered as the potential source of diagnostic biomarkers. These are obtained by such techniques as affinity chromatography, immunoaffinity, and ultrafiltration. A combination of proteomic and metabonomic analysis provides a collection of new markers which are helpful in modern medical diagnostics. The combination of the 2-DE technique and 1H MRS enables monitoring mild cognitive impairment(MCI) and the evolution of Alzheimer disease (AD). Proteome analysis of the liver and red blood cells of patients with diagnosed schizophrenia indicates the importance of analyzing external tissue, not only cerebrospinal fluid, in the diagnosis of this disease. Proteomic techniques enable the identification of new biomarkers in rheumatic disease by analyzing plasma, articular fluid and tissues. New protein biomarkers (in plasma, serum, pancreatic juice, urine) enable earlier cancer diagnosis and disease monitoring. Proteome analysis of maternal serum and amniotic fluid creates the possibility detection of protein markers in prenatal tests diagnosing Down's syndrome. Proteomic studies enable assessment of the influence of environmental contamination on the immunological system. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 44 | Schizophr. Res. 2009 Jun 111: 138-52 |
| PMID | 19359144 |
| Title | Chronic psychotropic drug treatment causes differential expression of Reelin signaling system in frontal cortex of rats. |
| Abstract | Disruption of the Reelin and GABAergic signaling systems have been observed in psychiatric disorders including autism, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and major depression. Less is known of therapeutic interventions that may help ameliorate the effects of these disruptions. The current study investigated whether chronic administration of psychotropic medications (clozapine, fluoxetine, haloperidol, lithium, olanzapine, and valproic acid) used in the treatment of psychiatric disorders alters levels of Reelin, its receptor Vldlr, downstream molecules Gsk3 beta, Dab-1, and Gad65/67 in rat prefrontal cortex as measured by qRT-PCR and SDS-PAGE and western blotting. qRT-PCR revealed that mRNAs for Reelin, Vldlr, Dab-1, Gsk3 beta, and Gad65 were each significantly altered by at least one of the drugs tested, and in the case of Reelin, Dab-1, and Gsk3 beta, by multiple drugs. To verify our results, we also performed SDS-PAGE and western blotting experiments. Again, several of the protein products for Reelin, Vldlr, Dab-1, Gsk3 beta, Gad65, and Gad67 were also significantly altered by multiple drugs. The present results suggest that the Reelin signaling and GABAergic systems are affected by commonly used psychotropic medications. These changes may help explain the efficacy of these drugs and provide further support for the investigation of the Reelin and GABAergic signaling systems as therapeutic targets for the treatment of neuropsychiatric diseases. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 45 | Appl Neuropsychol 2009 -1 16: 31-41 |
| PMID | 19205946 |
| Title | Interpretation of the RBANS in inpatient psychiatry: clinical normative data and prevalence of low scores for patients with schizophrenia. |
| Abstract | The Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status (RBANS; Randolph, 1998) is a screening battery designed to measure attention and processing speed, expressive language, visual-spatial and constructional abilities, and immediate and delayed memory. Clinical normative data for a large sample of inpatients and outpatients with schizophrenia spectrum disorders is available (Wilk, Gold, Humber, Dickerson, Fenton, & Buchanan, 2004). The purpose of this study was to replicate and extend the clinical normative data for the RBANS for use in inpatient psychiatry. Participants were 174 inpatients from a provincial psychiatric hospital with a diagnosis of schizophrenia spectrum disorder. Median performance on the RBANS was 1-2 standard deviations (SDS) below the mean. Patients with more than 12 years of education performed significantly better on every index score than patients with 12 or fewer years of education. Men performed better than women on the Visuospatial/Constructional Index (Cohen's d= .47). When examining all five Index scores simultaneously, it was common for inpatients to obtain three or more frankly impaired scores (i.e., less than the 2nd percentile). Overall, the performance of this inpatient sample was very similar to the clinical normative data presented by Wilk et al. (2004). Detailed normative tables by diagnosis, education, and gender are provided. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 46 | Front Psychiatry 2010 -1 1: 19 |
| PMID | 21423430 |
| Title | Low Density Lipoprotein Receptor-Related Protein and Apolipoprotein E Expression is Altered in Schizophrenia. |
| Abstract | Our recent microarray study reported altered mRNA expression of several low density lipoprotein receptor-related proteins (LRP) associated with the first 4 years following diagnosis with schizophrenia. Whilst this finding is novel, apolipoprotein E (APOE), which mediates its activity through LRPs, has been reported by several studies to be altered in brains of subjects with schizophrenia. We used qPCR to measure the expression of LRP2, LRP4, LRP6, LRP8, LRP10 and LRP12 mRNA in Brodmann's area (BA) 46 of the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex in 15 subjects with short duration of illness schizophrenia (SDS) and 15 pair matched controls. We also used Western blotting to measure APOE protein expression in BA46 from these subjects. Amongst the LRPs examined, LRP10 expression was significantly increased (P?=?0.03) and LRP12 was significantly decreased (P?SDS. APOE protein expression was also increased in SDS (P?=?0.01). No other marker examined in this study was altered with diagnosis. Our data supports a role for distinct members of the LRP family in the pathology of schizophrenia and adds weight to the hypothesis that aberrant apolipoprotein signaling is involved in the early stages of schizophrenia. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 47 | Proteomics 2010 Jul 10: 2551-5 |
| PMID | 20432482 |
| Title | Two-dimensional reference map for the basic proteome of the human dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC) of the prefrontal lobe region of the brain. |
| Abstract | We describe a 2-DE proteomic reference map containing 227 basic proteins in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex region of the human brain. Proteins were separated in the first dimension on pH 6-11 IPG strips using paper-bridge loading and on 12% SDS-PAGE in the second dimension. Proteins were subsequently identified by MS and spectra were analyzed using an in-house proteomics data analysis platform, Proline. The 2-DE reference map is available via the UCD 2-DE Proteome Database (http://proteomics-portal.ucd.ie:8082) and can also be accessed via the WORLD-2DPAGE Portal (http://www.expasy.ch/world-2dpage/). The associated protein identification data have been submitted to the PRIDE database (accession numbers 10018-10033). Separation of proteins in the basic region resolves more membrane associated proteins relevant to the synaptic pathology central to many neurological disorders. The 2-DE reference map will aid with further characterisation of neurological disorders such as bipolar and schizophrenia. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 48 | Am. J. Med. Genet. B Neuropsychiatr. Genet. 2010 Apr 153B: 792-801 |
| PMID | 19937977 |
| Title | Association study of NRG1, DTNBP1, RGS4, G72/G30, and PIP5K2A with schizophrenia and symptom severity in a Hungarian sample. |
| Abstract | Genetic association studies have yielded extensive but frequently inconclusive data about genetic risk factors for schizophrenia. Clinical and genetic heterogeneity are possible factors explaining the inconsistent findings. The objective of this study was to test the association of commonly incriminated candidate genes with two clinically divergent subgroups, non-deficit (SZ-ND) and deficit-schizophrenia (SZ-D), and symptom severity, in order to test for replication of previously reported results. A homogeneous sample of 280 schizophrenia patients and 230 healthy controls of Hungarian, Caucasian descent were genotyped for polymorphisms in schizophrenia candidate genes NRG1, DTNBP1, RGS4, G72/G30, and PIP5K2A. Patients were divided into the diagnostic subgroups of SZ-ND and SZ-D using the Schedule for Deficit Syndrome (SDS), and assessed clinically by the Positive and Negative Symptom Scale (PANSS). SNP8NRG241930 in NRG1 and rs1011313 in DTNBP1 were associated with SZ-ND (P = 0.04 and 0.03, respectively). Polymorphisms in RGS4, G72/G30, and PIP5K2A were neither associated with SZ-ND nor with SZ-D. SNP8NRG241930 showed association with the PANSS cognitive and hostility/excitability factors, rs1011313 with the negative factor and SDS total score, and rs10917670 in RGS4 was associated with the depression factor. Although these results replicate earlier findings about the genetic background of SZ-ND and SZ-D only partially, our data seem to confirm previously reported association of NRG1 with schizophrenia without prominent negative symptoms. It was possible to detect associations of small-to-medium effect size between the investigated candidate genes and symptom severity. Such studies have the potential to unravel the possible connection between genetic and clinical heterogeneity in schizophrenia. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 49 | Schizophr Bull 2010 Jul 36: 852-9 |
| PMID | 19223656 |
| Title | Neuropsychological profile in early-onset schizophrenia-spectrum disorders: measured with the MATRICS battery. |
| Abstract | Neurocognitive impairments have been documented in adolescents with early-onset schizophrenia (EOS). There is still inconsistency regarding an average profile, which could be due to the fact that each study uses different tests. The purpose of this study was to examine whether the "Measurement and Treatment Research to Improve Cognition in schizophrenia" (MATRICS) battery is useful in detecting differences between the patient group and the healthy controls, and to describe the neuropsychological pattern in the EOS group. Neuropsychological functioning was examined in 31 adolescents with schizophrenia spectrum disorders and 67 healthy controls, using the MATRICS battery. There were significant differences between the patients and the controls on every domain except for social cognition. Patients showed a generalized neurocognitive deficit of 0.8-1.8 SDS compared with controls, with verbal learning, working memory, and visual learning being the most affected areas. The MATRICS battery is sensitive in detecting differences between patients and controls in the adolescent population. However, we question the use of Mayer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test in this age group. Results document a significant generalized deficit in adolescents with EOS. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 50 | Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 2010 Jan 107 Suppl 1: 1765-71 |
| PMID | 20080665 |
| Title | Evolution in health and medicine Sackler colloquium: Genomic disorders: a window into human gene and genome evolution. |
| Abstract | Gene duplications alter the genetic constitution of organisms and can be a driving force of molecular evolution in humans and the great apes. In this context, the study of genomic disorders has uncovered the essential role played by the genomic architecture, especially low copy repeats (LCRs) or segmental duplications (SDS). In fact, regardless of the mechanism, LCRs can mediate or stimulate rearrangements, inciting genomic instability and generating dynamic and unstable regions prone to rapid molecular evolution. In humans, copy-number variation (CNV) has been implicated in common traits such as neuropathy, hypertension, color blindness, infertility, and behavioral traits including autism and schizophrenia, as well as disease susceptibility to HIV, lupus nephritis, and psoriasis among many other clinical phenotypes. The same mechanisms implicated in the origin of genomic disorders may also play a role in the emergence of segmental duplications and the evolution of new genes by means of genomic and gene duplication and triplication, exon shuffling, exon accretion, and fusion/fission events. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 51 | Schizophr Bull 2010 Jul 36: 860-8 |
| PMID | 19223658 |
| Title | Olfactory hedonic judgment in patients with deficit syndrome schizophrenia. |
| Abstract | Olfactory perception was examined in deficit syndrome (DS) and nondeficit syndrome (ND) schizophrenia patients. Participants included 22 controls (CN) and 41 patients with schizophrenia who were divided into DS (n = 15) and ND (n = 26) subtypes using the Schedule for the Deficit Syndrome (SDS). Olfactory perception for pleasant and unpleasant odors was assessed using the Brief Smell Identification Test. Participants were instructed to identifying each smell as well as provide hedonic judgment ratings of each smell on a 7-point scale (1 = extremely pleasant, 4 = neutral, and 7 = extremely unpleasant). Results indicated that when compared with the ND patients, the DS patients rated pleasant smells as being significantly less pleasant, although no difference between the groups was present for unpleasant smells, and both ND and DS groups significantly differed from CN on rating and identifying pleasant and unpleasant items. Additionally, lower smell identification accuracy was negatively correlated with SDS symptom severity, and valence ratings for pleasant odors were positively correlated with SDS diminished emotional range. Findings suggest that the DS is characterized by a unique pattern of olfactory valence judgment that is characterized by abnormalities in processing positively valenced stimuli. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 52 | Schizophr. Res. 2010 Dec 124: 1-12 |
| PMID | 20855185 |
| Title | Clinical significance of neurological soft signs in schizophrenia: factor analysis of the Neurological Evaluation Scale. |
| Abstract | Nonlocalizing neurologic deficits detectable by clinical evaluation-"soft signs"-are a robust finding in patients diagnosed with schizophrenia, but their conceptual and neuroanatomical correlates remain unclear. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the organization of these deficits and their clinical correlates using the Neurological Evaluation Scale (NES). Ninety-three male veterans with schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder were evaluated using a detailed clinical assessment that included the NES, the Extrapyramidal Symptom Rating Scale, the Abnormal Involuntary Movement Scale (AIMS), the Barnes Akathisia Scale, the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale, the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST), the Schedule for the Deficit Syndrome (SDS), and the Digit Symbol Substitution Task (DSST). Four factors explained 73% of the variance and had distinct clinical and neuropsychological correlates. Factor 1 reflected deficits involved with memory and sensory integration, and was associated with lower PANSS positive and higher AIMS scores. Factor 2 reflected impairments in motor control, and was associated with lower intelligence, more cognitive deficits, and deficit-syndrome schizophrenia. Factor 3 was related to lower intelligence and more perseverative errors on the WCST. Factor 4 was related to increasing age, more extrapyramidal symptoms, more perseverative errors, and worse scores on the DSST. Neurologic deficits in schizophrenia have an intrinsic organization that appears to have clinical significance, highlighting the continued utility of the NES in studies of neurological deficits in schizophrenia patients. The theoretical underpinning of this organization remains unclear. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 53 | Schizophr. Res. 2010 May 118: 1-5 |
| PMID | 20153140 |
| Title | Cognitive decline in schizophrenia from childhood to midlife: a 33-year longitudinal birth cohort study. |
| Abstract | We examined cognitive deficits before and after onset of schizophrenia in a longitudinal study that: 1) covers a long time interval; 2) minimizes test unreliability by including the identical measure at both childhood and post-onset cognitive assessments; and 3) minimizes bias by utilizing a population-based sample in which participants were selected neither for signs of illness in childhood nor for being at risk for schizophrenia. Participants in the present study, Developmental Insult and Brain Anomaly in schizophrenia (DIBS), were ascertained from an earlier epidemiologic study conducted in Oakland, CA. The original version of the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test (PPVT), a test of receptive vocabulary, was administered at age 5 or 9 and repeated as part of the DIBS study at an average age of 40. There were 10 DIBS cases with DSM-IV schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder and 15 demographically similar DIBS controls with both child and adult PPVT scores. Cases scored significantly lower than controls in childhood (d=0.95) and adulthood (d=1.67). Residualized scores indicating the number of SDS above or below one's predicted adult score revealed a mean case-control difference of -1.51SDS, consistent with significant relative decline over time among the cases (p<0.0013). In this prospective study, individuals who developed adult schizophrenia manifested impaired receptive vocabulary during childhood and further relative deterioration (or lack of expected improvement) between childhood and midlife. Limitations should also be acknowledged, including the small sample size and the fact that we cannot be certain when the continued deterioration took place. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 54 | Int J Soc Psychiatry 2010 Jan 56: 3-14 |
| PMID | 19861340 |
| Title | Determinants of mental health stigma among pharmacy students in Australia, Belgium, Estonia, Finland, India and Latvia. |
| Abstract | Healthcare professionals commonly exhibit negative attitudes toward people with mental disorders. Few international studies have sought to investigate the determinants of stigma. To conduct an international comparison of pharmacy students' stigma towards people with schizophrenia, and to determine whether stigma is consistently associated with stereotypical attributes of people with schizophrenia. Students (n = 649) at eight universities in Australia, Belgium, India, Finland, Estonia and Latvia completed a seven-item Social Distance Scale (SDS) and six items related to stereotypical attributes of people with schizophrenia. Mean SDS scores were 19.65 (+/- 3.97) in Australia, 19.61 (+/- 2.92) in Belgium, 18.75 (+/- 3.57) in India, 18.05 (+/- 3.12) in Finland, and 20.90 (+/- 4.04) in Estonia and Latvia. Unpredictability was most strongly associated with having a high social distance in Australia (beta = -1.285), the perception that people will never recover in India (beta = - 0.881), dangerousness in Finland (beta = -1.473) and the perception of being difficult to talk to in Estonia and Latvia (beta = -2.076). Unpredictability was associated with lower social distance in Belgium (beta = 0.839). The extent to which students held stigmatizing attitudes was similar in each country, however, the determinants of stigma were different. Pharmacy education may need to be tailored to address the determinants of stigma in each country. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 55 | Cogn Neuropsychiatry 2011 Jan 16: 50-70 |
| PMID | 20737328 |
| Title | The Empathy Quotient: a cross-cultural comparison of the Italian version. |
| Abstract | The Empathy Quotient (EQ) is a self-report questionnaire that was developed to measure the cognitive, affective, and behavioural aspects of empathy. We evaluated its cross-cultural validity in an Italian sample. A sample of 18- to 30-year-old undergraduate students of both sexes (N=256, males=118) were invited to fill in the Italian version of the EQ, as well as other measures of emotional competence and psychological distress. Results. The EQ had an excellent reliability (Cronbach's alpha=.79; test-retest at 1 month: Pearson's r=.85), and was normally distributed. Females scored higher than males, and more males (n=14, 11.9%) than females (n=4, 2.9%) scored lower than 30, the cutoff score that best differentiates autism spectrum conditions from controls. EQ was negatively related to the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS) and positively related to the Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability Scale (SDS). Principal component analysis retrieved the three-factor structure of the EQ. Lower emotional reactivity correlated with higher scores in measures of risk in both the schizophrenia-like (Peters et al. Delusions Inventory) and the bipolar (Hypomanic Personality Scale) spectra. The Italian version of the EQ has good validity, with an acceptable replication of the original three-factor solution, yielding three subscales with high internal and test-retest reliability. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 56 | Schizophr Bull 2011 Sep 37: 1017-26 |
| PMID | 20176859 |
| Title | The silent side of the spectrum: schizotypy and the schizotaxic self. |
| Abstract | The identification of individuals carrying unexpressed genetic liability to schizophrenia is crucial for both etiological research and clinical risk stratification. Subclinical psychopathological features detectable in the nonpsychotic part of the schizophrenia spectrum could improve the delineation of informative vulnerability phenotypes. Inspired by Meehl's schizotaxia-schizotypy heuristic model, we tested anomalous subjective experiences (self-disorders, SDS) as a candidate vulnerability phenotype in a sample of nonpsychotic, genetically high-risk subjects. A total of 218 unaffected members of 6 extended multiplex families (assessed between 1989 and 1999 during the Copenhagen schizophrenia Linkage Study) were stratified into 4 groups of increasing psychopathological expressivity: no mental illness (NMI), no mental illness with schizotypal traits (NMI-ST), personality disorders not fulfilling other personality disorders (OPDs), and schizotypal personality disorder (SPD). We tested the distribution of SDS among the subgroups, the effect of SDS on the risk of belonging to the different subgroups, and the effect of experimental grouping and concomitant psychopathology (ie, negative symptoms (NSs) and subpsychotic formal thought disorder [FTD]) on the chances of experiencing SDS. SDS distribution followed an incremental pattern from NMI to SPD. SDS were associated with a markedly increased risk of NMI-ST, OPDs, or SPD. The odds of SDS increased as a function of the diagnostic category assignment, independently of sociodemographics and concomitant subclinical psychopathology (NSs and FTD). The results support SDS as an expression of schizotaxic vulnerability and indicate a multidimensional model of schizotypy--characterized by SDS, NSs, FTD--as a promising heuristic construct to address liability phenotypes in genetically high-risk studies. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 57 | Cochrane Database Syst Rev 2011 -1 -1: CD004025 |
| PMID | 22161383 |
| Title | Music therapy for people with schizophrenia and schizophrenia-like disorders. |
| Abstract | Music therapy is a therapeutic method that uses musical interaction as a means of communication and expression. The aim of the therapy is to help people with serious mental disorders to develop relationships and to address issues they may not be able to using words alone. To review the effects of music therapy, or music therapy added to standard care, compared with 'placebo' therapy, standard care or no treatment for people with serious mental disorders such as schizophrenia. We searched the Cochrane schizophrenia Group Trials Register (December 2010) and supplemented this by contacting relevant study authors, handsearching of music therapy journals and manual searches of reference lists. All randomised controlled trials (RCTs) that compared music therapy with standard care, placebo therapy, or no treatment. Studies were reliably selected, quality assessed and data extracted. We excluded data where more than 30% of participants in any group were lost to follow-up. We synthesised non-skewed continuous endpoint data from valid scales using a standardised mean difference (SMD). If statistical heterogeneity was found, we examined treatment 'dosage' and treatment approach as possible sources of heterogeneity. We included eight studies (total 483 participants). These examined effects of music therapy over the short- to medium-term (one to four months), with treatment 'dosage' varying from seven to 78 sessions. Music therapy added to standard care was superior to standard care for global state (medium-term, 1 RCT, n = 72, RR 0.10 95% CI 0.03 to 0.31, NNT 2 95% CI 1.2 to 2.2). Continuous data identified good effects on negative symptoms (4 RCTs, n = 240, SMD average endpoint Scale for the Assessment of Negative Symptoms (SANS) -0.74 95% CI -1.00 to -0.47); general mental state (1 RCT, n = 69, SMD average endpoint Positive and Negative Symptoms Scale (PANSS) -0.36 95% CI -0.85 to 0.12; 2 RCTs, n=100, SMD average endpoint Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS) -0.73 95% CI -1.16 to -0.31); depression (2 RCTs, n = 90, SMD average endpoint Self-Rating Depression Scale (SDS) -0.63 95% CI -1.06 to -0.21; 1 RCT, n = 30, SMD average endpoint Hamilton Depression Scale (Ham-D) -0.52 95% CI -1.25 to -0.21 ); and anxiety (1 RCT, n = 60, SMD average endpoint SAS -0.61 95% CI -1.13 to -0.09). Positive effects were also found for social functioning (1 RCT, n = 70, SMD average endpoint Social Disability Schedule for Inpatients (SDSI) score -0.78 95% CI -1.27 to -0.28). Furthermore, some aspects of cognitive functioning and behaviour seem to develop positively through music therapy. Effects, however, were inconsistent across studies and depended on the number of music therapy sessions as well as the quality of the music therapy provided. Music therapy as an addition to standard care helps people with schizophrenia to improve their global state, mental state (including negative symptoms) and social functioning if a sufficient number of music therapy sessions are provided by qualified music therapists. Further research should especially address the long-term effects of music therapy, dose-response relationships, as well as the relevance of outcomes measures in relation to music therapy. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 58 | J Clin Psychopharmacol 2011 Jun 31: 274-80 |
| PMID | 21508850 |
| Title | Sexual dysfunction in first-episode schizophrenia patients: results from European First Episode Schizophrenia Trial. |
| Abstract | Sexual dysfunctions (SDS) occur frequently in schizophrenia patients and have a huge impact on quality of life and compliance. They are often associated with antipsychotic medication. Nicotine consumption, negative or depressive symptoms, and physical illness are also discussed as contributing factors. Data on SD in first-episode schizophrenia patients are scarce.As part of the European First Episode schizophrenia Trial, first-episode schizophrenia patients were randomly assigned to 5 medication groups. We assessed SD by analyzing selected items from the Udvalg for Kliniske Undersugelser at baseline and at 5 following visits.Differences between antipsychotics were small for all SDS, and fairly little change in the prevalence of SDS was seen over the course of the study. A significantly larger increase of amenorrhea and galactorrhea was seen with amisulpride than with the other medications. In men, higher age, more pronounced Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale general psychopathology symptoms, and higher plasma prolactin levels predicted higher rates of erectile and ejaculatory dysfunctions. Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale negative symptoms and higher age were predictors for decreased libido.In women, higher prolactin plasma levels were identified as a predictor of amenorrhea. Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale negative symptoms predicted decreased libido.All evidence taken together underscores the influence of the disease schizophrenia itself on sexual functioning. In addition, there is a strong correlation between the prolactin-increasing properties of amisulpride and menstrual irregularities. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 59 | J Sex Med 2011 May 8: 1371-82 |
| PMID | 20946156 |
| Title | Psychometric properties of the Spanish version of the Changes in Sexual Functioning Questionnaire Short-Form (CSFQ-14) in patients with severe mental disorders. |
| Abstract | Sexual dysfunction in patients with severe mental disorders is often underestimated or overlooked by psychiatrists. A brief and valid self-report instrument for assessing sexual functioning may well contribute to changing this situation. To validate the Short Form of the Changes in Sexual Functioning Questionnaire (CSFQ-14) in Spanish patients with severe mental disorders. Naturalistic, cross-sectional, multicenter, validation study. Eighty-nine patients with schizophrenia and 82 with bipolar disorder were evaluated using the CSFQ-14, the Visual Analogue Scale for Sexual Functioning Satisfaction (VAS-SFS), and the Clinical Global Impression-Severity scales for mental disorders (CGI-S) and for Sexual Dysfunction (CGI-SSD). The 14-item Changes in Sexual Functioning Questionnaire. Internal reliability (Cronbach's alpha) = 0.90. Construct validity = 3 principal components, of which the first, arousal-orgasm, explained 46.4% of the total variance. Convergent validity: Pearson correlation coefficients between CSFQ-14 and VAS-SFS?= 0.33 (P < 0.01) and between CSFQ-14 and CGI-SDS =?-0.71 (P < 0.01). Discriminant validity: The CSFQ-14 was able to discriminate among patients with no, mild, moderate, and severe sexual dysfunction according to CGI-SDS scores, both in males (P < 0.001) and females (P The Spanish version of the CSFQ-14 is a reliable and valid instrument for assessing sexual functioning in patients with severe mental disorders. As a brief, self-rated instrument, the CSFQ-14 scale seems to be appropriate for use in everyday clinical practice as a means of identifying and monitoring changes in sexual functioning. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 60 | Schizophr Bull 2011 Mar 37: 344-51 |
| PMID | 19528205 |
| Title | Looking at the schizophrenia spectrum through the prism of self-disorders: an empirical study. |
| Abstract | Nonpsychotic anomalies of subjective experience were emphasized in both classic literature and phenomenological psychiatry as essential clinical features of schizophrenia. However, only in recent years, their topicality with respect to the construct validity of the concept of the schizophrenia spectrum has been explicitly acknowledged, mainly as a consequence of the increasing focus on early detection and prevention of psychosis. The current study tested the hypothesis of a specific aggregation of self-disorders (SDS, various anomalies of self-awareness) in schizophrenia-spectrum conditions, comparing different diagnostic groups; 305 subjects, previously assessed in the Copenhagen schizophrenia Linkage Study, were grouped into 4 experimental samples, according to their Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (Third Edition Revised) main diagnosis: schizophrenia, (n = 29), schizotypal personality disorder (n = 61), other mental illness not belonging to the schizophrenia spectrum (n = 112), and no mental illness (n = 103). The effect of diagnostic grouping on the level of SDS was explored via general linear model and logistic regression. The diagnosis of schizophrenia and schizotypy predicted higher levels of SDS, and SDS scores were significantly different between spectrum and nonspectrum samples; the likelihood of experiencing SDS increased as well with the diagnostic severity. The findings support the assumption that SDS are a discriminant psychopathological feature of the schizophrenia spectrum and suggest their incorporation to strengthen its construct validity, with potential benefit for both early detection and pathogenetic research. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 61 | Schizophr Bull 2011 Sep 37: 1017-26 |
| PMID | 20176859 |
| Title | The silent side of the spectrum: schizotypy and the schizotaxic self. |
| Abstract | The identification of individuals carrying unexpressed genetic liability to schizophrenia is crucial for both etiological research and clinical risk stratification. Subclinical psychopathological features detectable in the nonpsychotic part of the schizophrenia spectrum could improve the delineation of informative vulnerability phenotypes. Inspired by Meehl's schizotaxia-schizotypy heuristic model, we tested anomalous subjective experiences (self-disorders, SDS) as a candidate vulnerability phenotype in a sample of nonpsychotic, genetically high-risk subjects. A total of 218 unaffected members of 6 extended multiplex families (assessed between 1989 and 1999 during the Copenhagen schizophrenia Linkage Study) were stratified into 4 groups of increasing psychopathological expressivity: no mental illness (NMI), no mental illness with schizotypal traits (NMI-ST), personality disorders not fulfilling other personality disorders (OPDs), and schizotypal personality disorder (SPD). We tested the distribution of SDS among the subgroups, the effect of SDS on the risk of belonging to the different subgroups, and the effect of experimental grouping and concomitant psychopathology (ie, negative symptoms (NSs) and subpsychotic formal thought disorder [FTD]) on the chances of experiencing SDS. SDS distribution followed an incremental pattern from NMI to SPD. SDS were associated with a markedly increased risk of NMI-ST, OPDs, or SPD. The odds of SDS increased as a function of the diagnostic category assignment, independently of sociodemographics and concomitant subclinical psychopathology (NSs and FTD). The results support SDS as an expression of schizotaxic vulnerability and indicate a multidimensional model of schizotypy--characterized by SDS, NSs, FTD--as a promising heuristic construct to address liability phenotypes in genetically high-risk studies. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 62 | Schizophr Bull 2011 Sep 37: 1017-26 |
| PMID | 20176859 |
| Title | The silent side of the spectrum: schizotypy and the schizotaxic self. |
| Abstract | The identification of individuals carrying unexpressed genetic liability to schizophrenia is crucial for both etiological research and clinical risk stratification. Subclinical psychopathological features detectable in the nonpsychotic part of the schizophrenia spectrum could improve the delineation of informative vulnerability phenotypes. Inspired by Meehl's schizotaxia-schizotypy heuristic model, we tested anomalous subjective experiences (self-disorders, SDS) as a candidate vulnerability phenotype in a sample of nonpsychotic, genetically high-risk subjects. A total of 218 unaffected members of 6 extended multiplex families (assessed between 1989 and 1999 during the Copenhagen schizophrenia Linkage Study) were stratified into 4 groups of increasing psychopathological expressivity: no mental illness (NMI), no mental illness with schizotypal traits (NMI-ST), personality disorders not fulfilling other personality disorders (OPDs), and schizotypal personality disorder (SPD). We tested the distribution of SDS among the subgroups, the effect of SDS on the risk of belonging to the different subgroups, and the effect of experimental grouping and concomitant psychopathology (ie, negative symptoms (NSs) and subpsychotic formal thought disorder [FTD]) on the chances of experiencing SDS. SDS distribution followed an incremental pattern from NMI to SPD. SDS were associated with a markedly increased risk of NMI-ST, OPDs, or SPD. The odds of SDS increased as a function of the diagnostic category assignment, independently of sociodemographics and concomitant subclinical psychopathology (NSs and FTD). The results support SDS as an expression of schizotaxic vulnerability and indicate a multidimensional model of schizotypy--characterized by SDS, NSs, FTD--as a promising heuristic construct to address liability phenotypes in genetically high-risk studies. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 63 | Schizophr Bull 2011 Mar 37: 344-51 |
| PMID | 19528205 |
| Title | Looking at the schizophrenia spectrum through the prism of self-disorders: an empirical study. |
| Abstract | Nonpsychotic anomalies of subjective experience were emphasized in both classic literature and phenomenological psychiatry as essential clinical features of schizophrenia. However, only in recent years, their topicality with respect to the construct validity of the concept of the schizophrenia spectrum has been explicitly acknowledged, mainly as a consequence of the increasing focus on early detection and prevention of psychosis. The current study tested the hypothesis of a specific aggregation of self-disorders (SDS, various anomalies of self-awareness) in schizophrenia-spectrum conditions, comparing different diagnostic groups; 305 subjects, previously assessed in the Copenhagen schizophrenia Linkage Study, were grouped into 4 experimental samples, according to their Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (Third Edition Revised) main diagnosis: schizophrenia, (n = 29), schizotypal personality disorder (n = 61), other mental illness not belonging to the schizophrenia spectrum (n = 112), and no mental illness (n = 103). The effect of diagnostic grouping on the level of SDS was explored via general linear model and logistic regression. The diagnosis of schizophrenia and schizotypy predicted higher levels of SDS, and SDS scores were significantly different between spectrum and nonspectrum samples; the likelihood of experiencing SDS increased as well with the diagnostic severity. The findings support the assumption that SDS are a discriminant psychopathological feature of the schizophrenia spectrum and suggest their incorporation to strengthen its construct validity, with potential benefit for both early detection and pathogenetic research. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 64 | Schizophr Bull 2011 Mar 37: 344-51 |
| PMID | 19528205 |
| Title | Looking at the schizophrenia spectrum through the prism of self-disorders: an empirical study. |
| Abstract | Nonpsychotic anomalies of subjective experience were emphasized in both classic literature and phenomenological psychiatry as essential clinical features of schizophrenia. However, only in recent years, their topicality with respect to the construct validity of the concept of the schizophrenia spectrum has been explicitly acknowledged, mainly as a consequence of the increasing focus on early detection and prevention of psychosis. The current study tested the hypothesis of a specific aggregation of self-disorders (SDS, various anomalies of self-awareness) in schizophrenia-spectrum conditions, comparing different diagnostic groups; 305 subjects, previously assessed in the Copenhagen schizophrenia Linkage Study, were grouped into 4 experimental samples, according to their Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (Third Edition Revised) main diagnosis: schizophrenia, (n = 29), schizotypal personality disorder (n = 61), other mental illness not belonging to the schizophrenia spectrum (n = 112), and no mental illness (n = 103). The effect of diagnostic grouping on the level of SDS was explored via general linear model and logistic regression. The diagnosis of schizophrenia and schizotypy predicted higher levels of SDS, and SDS scores were significantly different between spectrum and nonspectrum samples; the likelihood of experiencing SDS increased as well with the diagnostic severity. The findings support the assumption that SDS are a discriminant psychopathological feature of the schizophrenia spectrum and suggest their incorporation to strengthen its construct validity, with potential benefit for both early detection and pathogenetic research. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 65 | Kurume Med J 2012 -1 59: 25-31 |
| PMID | 23257635 |
| Title | Psychoeducation may reduce self-stigma of people with schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder. |
| Abstract | Previous studies suggest that self-stigma is related to social isolation and discrimination. Although it is known that stigma has cultural and social impacts, only a few studies in Japan have explored self-stigma in people with schizophrenia. The present study was conducted to investigate self-stigma in people with schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder in Japan under a typical clinical setting, and to examine the effect of psychoeducation on self-stigma. Fifty-six participants (44 men and 12 women) who met the DSM-IV criteria for schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder were recruited. All participants completed several questionnaires including social distance scale. Collected data were classified into an experiential or non-experiential group according to hospital records. The experiential group received psychoeducation which focused on reducing self-stigma by correcting inaccurate ideas about schizophrenia, and the relation between schizophrenia and criminal activity or violence, by watching videotapes and analyzing data from a report published by the National Police Agency. After the intervention, participants completed the Japanese version of the Social Distance Scale (SDS-J), the Knowledge of Illness and Drugs Inventory (KIDI) questionnaire, the Drug Attitude Inventory 10 (DAI-10), and the Birchwood's Psychosis Insight Scale (BPIS). In addition Global Assessment of Functioning Scale (GAF) scores were calculated for each participant. Significant differences between the 2 groups were observed for the SDS-J, KIDI, and BPIS (P<0.01 for each). However, no significant differences were observed for the DAI-10, GAF, age, and duration of treatment. The results of a path analysis showed that increasing knowledge about schizophrenia and its treatment might play an important role in reducing the self-stigma associated with this disease. When performing psychoeducation for people with schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder, we need to discuss the pervasive effects of stigma and discrimination. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 66 | J. Nerv. Ment. Dis. 2012 Nov 200: 935-40 |
| PMID | 23124176 |
| Title | Social distance and stigma toward individuals with schizophrenia: findings in an urban, African-American community sample. |
| Abstract | Because schizophrenia is arguably among the most stigmatized health conditions, research assessing correlates of stigma is essential. This study examined factors associated with stigma in predominantly Protestant, low-income, urban African Americans in the Southeastern United States. A survey was distributed to 282 patrons of an inner-city food court/farmers' market. Associations were assessed between two measures of stigma--an adapted version of the Social Distance Scale (SDS) and a Semantic Differential Measure (SDM) of attributes such as dangerousness, dirtiness, and worthlessness--and several key variables addressing sociodemographic characteristics and exposure to/familiarity with mental illnesses. Independent predictors of scores on the two measures were identified using linear regression modeling. Higher stigma (as measured by the SDM) was predicted by a family history of psychiatric treatment, whereas lower stigma (as indicated by the SDS) was predicted by personal psychiatric treatment history and higher annual income. The results suggest special considerations when working with disenfranchised populations, especially family members of individuals with mental illnesses, in treatment settings. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 67 | Psychiatr Danub 2012 Oct 24 Suppl 3: S303-10 |
| PMID | 23114807 |
| Title | Self-disorders and the experiential core of schizophrenia spectrum vulnerability. |
| Abstract | An increasing amount of empirical studies demonstrates that anomalies of self-experience (self-disorders) are characteristic of schizophrenia and related spectrum conditions, indicating that self-disorders (SDS) are likely to constitute important vulnerability phenotypes. On a clinical level, SDS are non-psychotic alterations of subjective experience that include disturbances of self-awareness (e.g., fading first-person perspective, waning sense of basic identity, depersonalization and hyperreflectivity), autopsychic disorders (e.g., thought pressure or block, perceptualization of mental stream and spatialization of thoughts), loss of common sense (e.g., perplexity), and existential alterations (e.g., solipsistic grandiosity). Such experiences, define essential aspects of the clinical expressions of schizophrenia lending psychopathological coherence to its spectrum manifestations. Furthermore the experiential nature of SDS makes them amenable to the patient's introspection which can be elicited in the dialogical context of the psychiatric interview with important implication for the therapeutic relation. The aim of this presentation is to illustrate the phenomenological core of these experiential anomalies, emphasizing their topicality for the exploration of vulnerability to schizophrenia spectrum conditions and their coherence with the overall clinical picture. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 68 | Qual Life Res 2012 Mar 21: 247-56 |
| PMID | 21655934 |
| Title | Patient education methods to support quality of life and functional ability among patients with schizophrenia: a randomised clinical trial. |
| Abstract | The aim of this study was to estimate the effectiveness of patient education methods on quality of life and functional impairment of patients with schizophrenia. A multicentre, randomized controlled trial was carried out in two psychiatric hospitals in Finland from March 2005 to October 2007. A total of 311 patients with a diagnosis of schizophrenia, schizotypal disorder or delusional disorder were randomly allocated to computer-based patient education (n = 100), conventional education with standard leaflets (n = 106) and standard treatment (n = 105). Participants were followed up 12 months later. Primary outcome was quality of life (Q-LES-Q-SF) and secondary outcome was functional disability (SDS). Analysis was performed by intention-to-treat. This study is registered, number ISRCTN74919979. Patients' global quality of life improved and functional disability decreased significantly in all education groups over the follow-up time. There were no significant differences between groups in these outcomes. In light of the findings there is no evidence to support a particular education method as the best way to improve patients' quality of life or improve functional ability. On the other hand, no intervention was found to be harmful. Thus computer-based patient education may be a suitable alternative for some patients. While information technology will be more widely used in societies, computer-based intervention may be beneficial for some patients with serious mental disorders. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 69 | J. Nerv. Ment. Dis. 2012 Jul 200: 632-6 |
| PMID | 22759943 |
| Title | Selective aggregation of self-disorders in first-treatment DSM-IV schizophrenia spectrum disorders. |
| Abstract | Converging evidence indicates that self-disorders (SDS) selectively aggregate in schizophrenia spectrum conditions. The aim of this study was to test the discriminatory power of SDS with respect to schizophrenia and nonschizophrenia spectrum psychosis at first treatment contact. SDS were assessed in 91 patients referred for first treatment through the Examination of Anomalous Self-experience (EASE) instrument. Diagnoses, symptoms severity, and function were assessed using the Structural Clinical Interview for the DSM-IV, Structured Clinical Interview for the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale, Calgary Depression Scale for schizophrenia, Young Mania Rating Scale, and Global Assessment of Functioning-Split Version. Most patients found it highly relevant to talk about SDS. EASE total score critically discriminated between schizophrenia, bipolar psychosis, and other psychoses. The EASE total score was the only clinical measure that showed a significant and robust association with the diagnosis of schizophrenia. Systematic exploration of anomalous self-experiences could improve differential diagnosis in first-treatment patients. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 70 | J. Nerv. Ment. Dis. 2012 Jul 200: 577-83 |
| PMID | 22759933 |
| Title | Examination of anomalous self-experience: initial study of the structure of self-disorders in schizophrenia spectrum. |
| Abstract | A growing body of evidence points to the clinical and heuristic value of anomalous subjective experiences (ASEs) for the characterization of schizophrenia spectrum vulnerability and early detection purposes. In particular, a subgroup of ASEs, entailing basic disorders of self-awareness (self-disorders [SDS]), has been shown to constitute a core feature of both clinically overt and latent (schizotaxic) spectrum phenotypes. However, a major limitation for the translational implementation of this research evidence has been a lack of assessment tools capable of encompassing the clinical richness of SDS. Here, we present the initial normative data and psychometric properties of a newly developed instrument (Examination of Anomalous Self-experience [EASE]), specifically designed to support the psychopathological exploration of SDS in both research and "real world" clinical settings. Our results support the clinical validity of the EASE as a tool for assessing anomalies of self-awareness (SDS) and lend credit to the translational potential of a phenomenological exploration of the subjective experience of vulnerability to schizophrenia. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 71 | Schizophr. Res. 2012 Mar 135: 79-83 |
| PMID | 22137461 |
| Title | The association between self-disorders and neurocognitive dysfunction in schizophrenia. |
| Abstract | Neurocognitive deficits and self-disorders (i.e. altered basic self-awareness or - sense of self) have both been suggested as fundamental trait features of schizophrenia. However, no study until now has investigated the relationship between these two core features. To investigate the relationship between self-disorders and neurocognitive performance in patients with schizophrenia. Self-disorders were assessed in 57 patients in the early phase of schizophrenia by means of the Examination of Anomalous Self-Experience (EASE) instrument. The neurocognitive assessments included measures of psychomotor speed, working memory, executive- and memory functions. There were few associations between self-disorders and neurocognitive impairments. However, high levels of SDS were significantly associated with impaired verbal memory. The reason for the general lack of associations between self-disorders and neurocognition could be that they represent different basic features of the illness. Verbal memory may however be linked to deficits in the patients' ability to comprehend, direct, remember and reason about their thoughts, functions that are intimately related to the basic sense of self. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 72 | Int J Methods Psychiatr Res 2012 Mar 21: 76-85 |
| PMID | 22290656 |
| Title | Measuring depression using item response theory: an examination of three measures of depressive symptomatology. |
| Abstract | Evaluations of assessment instruments using classical test theory typically rely on indices of internal consistency, test-retest reliability, and construct validity. However, the use of models from item response theory (IRT) allows comparison of instruments (and items) in terms of the information they provide and where they provide it along the continuum of severity of the construct being assessed. Such results help to identify the measures most appropriate for specific clinical and research contexts. The present study examined the functioning of the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), the Center for Epidemiologic Studies-Depression (CES-D) scale, and the nine primary symptoms from the depression module of the Schedule for Affective Disorders and schizophrenia-Children (K-SADS) using IRT methods. A large sample of adolescents (n = 1709) completed the BDI, CES-D scale, and K-SADS. IRT calibration analyses demonstrated that the BDI and CES-D scale performed well in similar ranges of depressive severity (approximately -1 to +3 standard deviations [SDS]), although the BDI provided more information at higher severity levels and the CES-D scale at lower severity levels. The K-SADS depression items, which are dichotomous and focused on clinical disorder, provided the least information that was restricted to the narrowest range (approximately +1 to +3 SDS). This work finds consistency between past rationale for the use of the BDI in clinical samples while using the CES-D scale in epidemiological studies. The results for the K-SADS suggest that interview measures may benefit from increasing the number of items and/or response options to collect more psychometric information. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 73 | Turk Psikiyatri Derg 2012 -1 23: 237-46 |
| PMID | 23225124 |
| Title | Gray matter changes in patients with deficit schizophrenia and non-deficit schizophrenia. |
| Abstract | Reduced gray matter volume is a frequently reported finding in brain imaging studies performed with schizophrenia patients. Some studies suggest a probable link between the negative symptoms of schizophrenia and gray matter loss; however, some of the negative symptoms observed in schizophrenia patients are not primarily linked to the core of schizophrenia. This study aimed to compare gray matter volumes in patients with primary negative symptoms (deficit schizophrenia [DS]), non-DS (NDS) patients, and healthy controls. The study included 11 DS patients, 18 non-DS patients, and 17 healthy controls. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was performed using a 1.5 Tesla MR unit. The Schedule for Deficit Syndrome (SDS) was used to determine which patients were DS and non-DS. MR images were compared using voxel-based morphometry (VBM) analysis. Contrary to expectations, no evidence to support less gray matter in DS patients than in NDS patients was observed. Furthermore, NDS patients had less gray matter volume in several brain regions (frontal and temporal cortices) than did the DS patients. All patients had perisylvian gray matter volume deficits, though the NDS patients had more widespread volume deficiencies. No evidence to support the hypothesis that DS patients have less gray matter volume than those of NDS patients was observed. On the contrary, DS patients had more gray matter volume in some regions; the differences observed in gray matter volume in these brain regions between the 2 patient groups may be responsible for the differences in their clinical manifestations. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 74 | Shanghai Arch Psychiatry 2012 Jun 24: 140-8 |
| PMID | 25324618 |
| Title | Effectiveness of a rehabilitative program that integrates hospital and community services for patients with schizophrenia in one community in Shanghai. |
| Abstract | One possible reason for the less than satisfactory long-term outcomes for schizophrenia is the lack of coordination between inpatient and community-based services. Assess the effectiveness of a rehabilitation model for schizophrenia that integrates hospital and community services. Ninety patients with schizophrenia participating in an integrated rehabilitation program at 10 community centers in Changning, Shanghai (intervention group) and 52 community-based patients with schizophrenia randomly selected from all patients in Changning participating in routine outpatient care (control group) were assessed at enrollment using the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) and the Morningside Rehabilitation Status Scale (MRSS) and then re-assessed 1 year later by clinicians who were blind to the group assignment of the patients. The patients' registered guardians (the vast majority were co-resident family members) were assessed at the same times using the Family Burden Scale (FBS), the Self-rating Depression Scale (SDS), the Self-rating Anxiety Scale (SAS) and the Social Support Rating Scale (SSRS). At enrollment the clinical status of patients in the two groups (assessed with PANSS) was similar but the social functioning measures assessed by MRSS were significantly worse in the intervention group than in the control group. After one year the improvement of both clinical symptoms and social functioning measures were significantly greater in the intervention group than in the control group. In the year of follow-up, 3 individuals (3.3%) in the intervention group and 6 individuals (11.5%) in the control group were re-hospitalized (Fisher Exact Test, p=0.074). The feelings of burden, depression, anxiety and reported social support among guardians of patients in the intervention group were not significantly different from those for guardians of patients in the control group either at the time of enrollment or after the 1-year intervention. However, guardians in the intervention group showed a significant decrease in depressive and anxiety symptoms over the one-year follow-up. Rehabilitative approaches that integrate hospital and community services can improve clinical and social outcomes for patients with schizophrenia. Further development of these programs is needed to increase the proportion of patients who achieve regular employment (i.e., 'community re-integration') and to provide family members with better psychosocial support. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 75 | Neurosci. Lett. 2012 Aug 522: 85-91 |
| PMID | 22580203 |
| Title | Lack of support for association between the copy number variants in the FCGR locus and schizophrenia: a case control study. |
| Abstract | The missing heritability of polygenic schizophrenia after genome-wide association studies (GWAS) can be potentially accounted for by the fact that most dynamic multiallelic copy number variants (CNVs) overlap segmental duplications (SDS). The FCGR locus covers this category of complex CNVs and it has long been postulated to harbor variants conferring the risk of schizophrenia. However, such association remains unproven. We used a case-control design to investigate CNV-based association with the disease. Data were obtained from 598 unrelated schizophrenia patients and 959 normal controls of Han ancestry from Shanghai. A total of four copy number (CN) probes in the FCGR locus were detected using TaqMan(®) Copy Number Assay. SPSS version 16.0 was used for the statistical analyses. And the frequency distributions of target CN in FCGR locus were very similar between controls and cases, whereas the CNV frequency differed markedly among different target CN analyzed in the two cohorts. When compared with the predominant two copies per diploid genome, a distinct non-protein-coding CN deletion region containing regulatory sequences was detected by probe Hs04194069_cn. Taken together, we found no evidence of association of target CNVs in the FCGR locus with schizophrenia. However, our negative findings suggest that more detailed next generation sequencing-based association studies are needed to fully evaluate the contribution of this category of complex CNVs to the disease. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 76 | Kaohsiung J. Med. Sci. 2012 Apr 28: 225-30 |
| PMID | 22453072 |
| Title | The Chinese version of the Severity of Dependence Scale as a screening tool for benzodiazepine dependence in Taiwan. |
| Abstract | The development of an instrument to estimate the incidence, characteristics, and risk factors of benzodiazepine (BZD) dependence broadly in Taiwan is an important task. This study assessed the validity of the Chinese version of the Severity of Dependence Scale (SDS([Ch])) among regular BZD users in Taiwan (n=228). A positive correlation was shown between SDS([Ch]) and Mini-International Neuropsychiatric Interview diagnosed of BZD dependence. Thirty-six percent of the users received a Mini-International Neuropsychiatric Interview diagnosis of current BZD dependence. The dependent users tended to be divorced/widowed; not schizophrenic; and have higher SDS([Ch]) scores, a longer duration of use, and multiple-BZD use. The SDS([Ch]) for BZD dependence was shown to have high diagnostic utility (area under the receiver operating characteristic curve=0.779), a sensitivity of 80.5%, and a specificity of 85.7%, with a cutoff point of 7. The findings support that the SDS([Ch]) is a valid brief self-reported questionnaire for the assessment of BZD dependence among chronic users in Taiwan. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 77 | Psychiatry Clin. Neurosci. 2012 Feb 66: 34-43 |
| PMID | 22250608 |
| Title | Reduced left uncinate fasciculus fractional anisotropy in deficit schizophrenia but not in non-deficit schizophrenia. |
| Abstract | schizophrenia is a psychiatric disorder manifesting with heterogeneous symptom clusters and clinical presentations. The deficit syndrome is the condition defined by the existence of primarily negative symptoms, and patients with the deficit syndrome differ from non-deficit patients on measures of brain structure and function. In the current study, by using diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), we investigated the frontotemporal connectivity that is hypothesized to differ between deficit and non-deficit schizophrenia. Twenty-nine patients and 17 healthy controls were included in the study. The patients had deficit (n = 11) or non-deficit (n = 18) schizophrenia and they were evaluated clinically with the Schedule for Deficit Syndrome (SDS) and Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS). Diffusion-based images were obtained with a 1.5T Siemens Magnetic Resonance Imaging machine and analyses were carried out with Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging of the Brain Library Software - Diffusion tool box software. The fractional anisotropy values in the left uncinate fasciculus of schizophrenia patients with the deficit syndrome were lower than those of non-deficit patients and the controls. There were no differences between non-deficit schizophrenia patients and controls. These findings provide evidence of left uncinate fasciculus damage resulting in disrupted communication between orbitofrontal prefrontal areas and temporal areas in deficit schizophrenia patients. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 78 | Compr Psychiatry 2012 Jul 53: 456-60 |
| PMID | 21871617 |
| Title | The association between anomalous self-experience and suicidality in first-episode schizophrenia seems mediated by depression. |
| Abstract | A recent hypothesis is that suicidality in schizophrenia may be linked to the patients' altered basic self-awareness or sense of self, termed self-disorders (SDS). The aim of the study was to investigate whether SDS in first-episode schizophrenia spectrum disorders are related to suicidality and whether this relationship is independent of or mediated by depression or other standard clinical measures. Self-disorders were assessed in 49 patients with first-episode schizophrenia by means of the Examination of Anomalous Self-Experience (EASE) instrument. Symptoms severity and functioning were assessed using the Structured Clinical Interview for the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale, Calgary Depression Scale for schizophrenia, and Global Assessment of Functioning-Split Version. Suicidality was measured by the Calgary Depression Scale for schizophrenia item 8. Analyses detected a significant association between current suicidality, current depression, and SDS as measured by the EASE. The effect of SDS on suicidal ideation appeared to be mediated by depression. The interaction between anomalous self-experiences and depression could be a rational clinical target for the prevention of suicidality in the early phases of schizophrenia and supports the rationale for including assessment of SDS in early intervention efforts. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 79 | Qual Life Res 2012 Mar 21: 247-56 |
| PMID | 21655934 |
| Title | Patient education methods to support quality of life and functional ability among patients with schizophrenia: a randomised clinical trial. |
| Abstract | The aim of this study was to estimate the effectiveness of patient education methods on quality of life and functional impairment of patients with schizophrenia. A multicentre, randomized controlled trial was carried out in two psychiatric hospitals in Finland from March 2005 to October 2007. A total of 311 patients with a diagnosis of schizophrenia, schizotypal disorder or delusional disorder were randomly allocated to computer-based patient education (n = 100), conventional education with standard leaflets (n = 106) and standard treatment (n = 105). Participants were followed up 12 months later. Primary outcome was quality of life (Q-LES-Q-SF) and secondary outcome was functional disability (SDS). Analysis was performed by intention-to-treat. This study is registered, number ISRCTN74919979. Patients' global quality of life improved and functional disability decreased significantly in all education groups over the follow-up time. There were no significant differences between groups in these outcomes. In light of the findings there is no evidence to support a particular education method as the best way to improve patients' quality of life or improve functional ability. On the other hand, no intervention was found to be harmful. Thus computer-based patient education may be a suitable alternative for some patients. While information technology will be more widely used in societies, computer-based intervention may be beneficial for some patients with serious mental disorders. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 80 | Neuroscience 2013 Oct 250: 222-31 |
| PMID | 23872394 |
| Title | Effects of withdrawal from repeated amphetamine exposure in peri-puberty on neuroplasticity-related genes in mice. |
| Abstract | Although extensive evidence demonstrates that repeated administration of amphetamine (AMPH) induces behavioral and neurochemical sensitization, the influence of the developmental timing of AMPH administration is unknown. This is an important issue to address because it could help clarify the influence of early drug exposure on neuronal plasticity and the involvement of dopaminergic sensitization in the etiopathology of neuropsychiatric disorders. Thus, we decided to investigate the molecular alterations induced by the administration of AMPH during adolescence, when repeated exposure to the psychostimulant may interfere with developmental neuroplasticity. We investigated the expression of the neurotrophin brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and of two inducible-early genes (arc and cfos) that bridge neuronal activity with long-lasting functional alterations. We found that peri-pubertal treatment with AMPH induces long-lasting changes in the expression of bdnf and of activity-regulated genes in the hippocampus and in the prefrontal/frontal cortex, and leads to alterations of their short-term modulation in response to a subsequent acute AMPH challenge. These data suggest that AMPH exposure in peri-puberty may negatively affect the maturation of brain structures, such as the prefrontal cortex, which facilitate the development of dopamine sensitization and may contribute to dopamine-dependent behavioral dysfunctions and molecular alterations in adulthood. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 81 | Proteomics 2013 Dec 13: 3548-53 |
| PMID | 24167090 |
| Title | The human oligodendrocyte proteome. |
| Abstract | Myelination of the CNS is performed by oligodendrocytes (OLs), which have been implicated in brain disorders, such as multiple sclerosis and schizophrenia. We have used the human oligodendroglial cell line MO3.13 to establish an OL reference proteome database. Proteins were prefractionationated by SDS-PAGE and after in-gel digestion subjected to nanoflow LC-MS analysis. Approximately 11?600 unique peptides were identified and, after stringent filtering, resulted in 2290 proteins representing nine distinct biological processes and various molecular classes and functions. OL-specific proteins, such as myelin basic protein (MBP) and 2',3'-cyclic nucleotide 3'-phosphodiesterase (CNP), as well as other proteins involved in multiple sclerosis and schizophrenia were also identified and are discussed. Proteins of this dataset have also been classified according to their chromosomal origin for providing useful data to the Chromosome-centric Human Proteome Project (C-HPP). Given the importance of OLs in the etiology of demyelinating and oligodendrogial disorders, the MO3.13 proteome database is a valuable data resource. The MS proteomics data have been deposited to the ProteomeXchange with identifier PXD000263 (http://proteomecentral.proteomexchange.org/dataset/PXD000263). |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 82 | Ther Drug Monit 2013 Aug 35: 493-501 |
| PMID | 23851906 |
| Title | Monitoring haloperidol exposure in body fluids and hair of children by liquid chromatography-high-resolution mass spectrometry. |
| Abstract | Haloperidol, 4-[4-(4-chlorophenyl)-4-hydroxy-1-piperidinyl]-1-(4-fluorophenyl)-1-butanone (HP), one of the most widely used antipsychotics in the treatment of schizophrenia, mania, and other psychiatric disorders, is frequently encountered in cases of unintentional pediatric intoxication because the ingestion of a small amount can cause significant toxic effects in children. For monitoring HP in suspected ingestions, a liquid chromatography-high-resolution mass spectrometry method has been developed and validated in urine, blood, and hair samples. The analyte was extracted from 1 mL blood or urine by liquid/liquid extraction and from 5 mg of hair by micropulverized extraction; gradient elution on an Atlantis T3 column was realized using HP-d4 as an internal standard. Positive ion electrospray ionization and high-resolution mass spectrometry determination were performed in an Orbitrap mass spectrometer. The method exhibited a r > 0.999 in the studied ranges (0.1-50 ng/mL in urine and blood and 0.1-50 ng/mg in hair) and a limit of quantification of 0.1 ng/mL for urine and blood and 0.1 ng/mg for hair; intra-assay and interassay relative SDS were always more than 18%. The method was applied to determine haloperidol in 3 children who were admitted to emergency departments. HP concentrations ranged from 2 to 21 ng/mL in urine, from not detected to 4.9 ng/mL in blood, and from 0.37 to 0.73 ng/mg in hair samples. The utilization of high-resolution/high-accuracy mass spectrometry in full scan mode allowed the identification of HP metabolites in urine and blood, thus unequivocally documenting the exposure to the drug. HP metabolites were structurally characterized by high-resolution multiple mass spectrometry. For the first time, a HP metabolite was detected in hair. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 83 | Schizophr. Res. 2013 Mar 144: 105-8 |
| PMID | 23312551 |
| Title | Can we inflate effect size and thus increase chances of producing "positive" results if we raise the baseline threshold in schizophrenia trials? |
| Abstract | The standardized mean difference (SMD), also referred to simply as effect size, is often used to summarize the results of a clinical trial when the outcome measure is continuous. SMD is calculated by dividing the difference in the mean scores of the experimental and control groups by their standard deviation (SD). One of the major arguments against SMD is that, if the studied sample is chosen to be artificially homogeneous and thus have a small SD, SMD can be overestimated. On the other hand, smaller SDS raise the chances of finding a statistically significant difference. This study examined whether we can increase sample homogeneity and decrease SD by raising the severity threshold to enter a clinical trial in secondary analyses of individual patient data from three large acute phase schizophrenia trials. Raising the baseline threshold on PANSS and BPRS did reduce the SDS at baseline but SMDs at endpoint remained by and large constant. It is concluded that restricting the entry criteria into schizophrenia trials cannot lead to larger SMDs or to smaller sample size necessary to detect an efficacy signal. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 84 | J Clin Psychiatry 2013 Jun 74: e12 |
| PMID | 23842020 |
| Title | Tools to assess negative symptoms in schizophrenia. |
| Abstract | Although effective treatments for negative symptoms are currently limited, clinicians still need to assess and monitor them because of their impact on patient functioning. Further, documenting patients' negative symptoms provides a complete clinical record that the clinician can use to make systematic and careful treatment decisions. Several tools for assessing negative symptoms in schizophrenia are available, including the Clinical Global Impression scale (CGI), the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS), the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS), the Scale for the Assessment of Negative Symptoms (SANS), the 16-item Negative Symptoms Assessment (NSA-16), and the Schedule for Deficit Syndrome (SDS). Additionally, newer instruments are in development-the Clinical Assessment Interview for Negative Symptoms (CAINS) and the Brief Negative Symptoms Scale (BNSS)-and are yielding promising results. This overview outlines these assessment tools so that clinicians can measure negative symptom severity and track treatment response for their patients with schizophrenia. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 85 | Acta Psychiatr Scand 2013 Oct 128: 238-50 |
| PMID | 23465195 |
| Title | Heterogeneity of schizoaffective disorder compared with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. |
| Abstract | Low diagnostic reliability, the need to meet criteria of two disorders, and its status as residual diagnosis in clinical practice led us to hypothesize that schizoaffective disorder (SAD) is characterized by considerable heterogeneity, particularly in comparison with schizophrenia (SZ) and bipolar disorder (BD). As this has not been investigated the aim of this study is to test whether heterogeneity is larger in SAD than in SZ and BD. Systematic search for studies simultaneously comparing all three diagnoses regarding demographic, clinical, psychometric (clinical rating scales and IQ tests), and biological parameters; comparison of heterogeneity as measured by standard deviation (SD). Standard deviation of SAD samples (N = 47) was smaller than in both differential diagnoses. SDS were 7% higher in BD than in SAD (SZ: 2% higher); in studies employing DSM-IIIR/-IV pooled SD was 4% higher in BD (8% lower in SZ). Differences between diagnoses were limited to the comparison of SAD and BD, and became smaller when only psychotic BD was considered. Heterogeneity of SZ and BD is not smaller than that of SAD. SAD seems not to be more diverse than other functional psychoses. Results are preliminary because of the novelty of the approach and to the small number of studies. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 86 | Schizophr. Res. 2013 Jun 147: 157-62 |
| PMID | 23608244 |
| Title | Categorical and dimensional approaches to negative symptoms of schizophrenia: focus on long-term stability and functional outcome. |
| Abstract | Negative symptoms of schizophrenia represent a heterogeneous psychopathological domain. Both categorical and dimensional approaches have been proposed to reduce negative symptoms heterogeneity. In the present 5-year follow-up study, long-term stability and impact on outcome of different aspects of negative symptoms were investigated. Following a categorical approach, long-term stability and outcome of deficit schizophrenia (DS), in comparison with nondeficit schizophrenia (NDS), were assessed. Following a dimensional approach, the factor structure and stability of broadly defined negative symptoms and the ability of the identified factors to predict functional outcome were investigated. DS and NDS subjects included in a previous study were invited to participate. Fifty-one out of 58 patients previously diagnosed as DS and 44 out of 54 NDS patients were included in the present study. The DS/NDS categorization was confirmed in 82.4% of DS and 79.6% of NDS subjects. At follow-up, DS patients showed more severe negative symptoms and greater social dysfunction than NDS ones. Schedule for the Deficit Syndrome (SDS) severity scores loaded on two factors: "Poor Emotional Expression" and "Avolition" and the factor structure was stable after 5 years. Avolition was associated to social outcome measures and Poor Emotional Expression to functioning in household activities. Psychosocial outcome was predicted by SDS factors reflecting the severity of broadly defined negative symptoms, but not by the DS/NDS categorization. This might lend support to the recent shift of research focus from the categorical approach focusing on the presence of primary and enduring negative symptoms to the investigation of key domains of broadly defined negative symptoms. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 87 | Cell. Signal. 2014 Sep 26: 1958-74 |
| PMID | 24815749 |
| Title | Mitotic activation of the DISC1-inducible cyclic AMP phosphodiesterase-4D9 (PDE4D9), through multi-site phosphorylation, influences cell cycle progression. |
| Abstract | In Rat-1 cells, the dramatic decrease in the levels of both intracellular cyclic 3'5' adenosine monophosphate (cyclic AMP; cAMP) and in the activity of cAMP-activated protein kinase A (PKA) observed in mitosis was paralleled by a profound increase in cAMP hydrolyzing phosphodiesterase-4 (PDE4) activity. The decrease in PKA activity, which occurs during mitosis, was attributable to PDE4 activation as the PDE4 selective inhibitor, rolipram, but not the phosphodiesterase-3 (PDE3) inhibitor, cilostamide, specifically ablated this cell cycle-dependent effect. PDE4 inhibition caused Rat-1 cells to move from S phase into G2/M more rapidly, to transit through G2/M more quickly and to remain in G1 for a longer period. Inhibition of PDE3 elicited no observable effects on cell cycle dynamics. Selective immunopurification of each of the four PDE4 sub-families identified PDE4D as being selectively activated in mitosis. Subsequent analysis uncovered PDE4D9, an isoform whose expression can be regulated by Disrupted-In-schizophrenia 1 (DISC1)/activating transcription factor 4 (ATF4) complex, as the sole PDE4 species activated during mitosis in Rat-1 cells. PDE4D9 becomes activated in mitosis through dual phosphorylation at Ser585 and Ser245, involving the combined action of ERK and an unidentified 'switch' kinase that has previously been shown to be activated by H2O2. Additionally, in mitosis, PDE4D9 also becomes phosphorylated at Ser67 and Ser81, through the action of MK2 (MAPKAPK2) and AMP kinase (AMPK), respectively. The multisite phosphorylation of PDE4D9 by all four of these protein kinases leads to decreased mobility (band-shift) of PDE4D9 on SDS-PAGE. PDE4D9 is predominantly concentrated in the perinuclear region of Rat-1 cells but with a fraction distributed asymmetrically at the cell margins. Our investigations demonstrate that the diminished levels of cAMP and PKA activity that characterise mitosis are due to enhanced cAMP degradation by PDE4D9. PDE4D9, was found to locate primarily not only in the perinuclear region of Rat-1 cells but also at the cell margins. We propose that the sequestration of PDE4D9 in a specific complex together with AMPK, ERK, MK2 and the H2O2-activatable 'switch' kinase allows for its selective multi-site phosphorylation, activation and regulation in mitosis. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 88 | Expert Opin Drug Saf 2014 May 13: 605-24 |
| PMID | 24697217 |
| Title | Second-generation and newly approved antipsychotics, serum prolactin levels and sexual dysfunctions: a critical literature review. |
| Abstract | Using antipsychotic (AP) medication can increase prolactin (PRL) levels and place the patient at risk of sexual dysfunction (SD). The aim of this review is to describe the PRL propensity of the different second-generation and newly approved APs. It then considers the prevalence rates of SDS associated with these compounds in patients with schizophrenia and treatment strategies for the management of SDS and/or hyperprolactinemia (HPRL). Furthermore, we address the lingering question regarding the association between SDS and PRL. SD (particularly long-term) data remain scarce for several APs. A wide variety of assessment techniques used in SD research make reliable comparisons between APs impossible. The majority of these reports do not equally allow us to distinguish between treatment (AP and co-medication)-emergent SDS and illness-related SDS. This makes it difficult to assess the degree to which these side effects are associated with 'PRL-raising' APs, and what part of this fraction is directly reducible to serum PRL levels. Also, few evidence-based treatment strategies for HPRL and associated side effects are available. Therefore, longer-term randomized controlled trials, using reliable and valid structured interviews or questionnaires, are necessary to establish the precise relationship between APs, PRL levels and SDS rates and develop valuable treatment options. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 89 | Schizophr. Res. 2014 Nov 159: 441-9 |
| PMID | 25239127 |
| Title | Do deficits in the magnocellular priming underlie visual derealization phenomena? Preliminary neurophysiological and self-report results in first-episode schizophrenia patients. |
| Abstract | Early visual impairments probably partially caused by impaired interactions between magnocellular (M) and parvocellular (P) pathways (M priming deficit), and disturbances of basic self-awareness or self-disorders (SDS) are core features of schizophrenia. The relationships between these features have not yet been studied. We hypothesized that the M priming was impaired in first-episode patients and that this deficit was associated with visual aspects of SDS. To investigate early visual processing in a sample of first-episode schizophrenia patients and to explore the relationships between M and P functioning and visual aspects of SDS addressed by the Examination of Anomalous Self-Experience (EASE) interview. Nine stimulating conditions were used to investigate M and P pathways and their interaction in a pattern reversal visually evoked potential (VEP) paradigm. N80 at mixed M- and P-conditions was used to investigate magnocellular priming. Generators were analyzed using source localization (Brain Electrical Source Analysis software: BESA). VEPs of nineteen first-episode schizophrenia patients were compared to those of twenty matched healthy controls by a bootstrap resample procedure. Visual aspects of SDS were analyzed through a factor analysis to separate symptom clusters of derealization phenomena. Thereafter, the associations between the main factors and the N80 component were explored using linear mixed models. Factor analyses separated two EASE factors ("distance to the world", and "intrusive world"). The N80 component was represented by a single dipole located in the occipital visual cortex. The bootstrap analysis yielded significant amplitude reductions and prolonged latencies in first-episode patients relative to controls in response to mixed M-P conditions, and normal amplitudes and latencies in response to isolated P- and M-biased stimulation. Exploratory analyses showed significant negative correlations between the N80 amplitude values at mixed M-P conditions and the EASE factor "distance to the world", i.e. relatively higher amplitudes in the patient group were associated with higher subjective perceived derealization ("distance to the world"). The early VEP component N80 evoked by mixed M-P conditions is assumed to be a correlate of M priming, and showed reduced amplitudes and longer latencies in first-episode patients. It probably reflects a hypoactivation of the M-pathway. The negative association between visual SDS (derealization phenomena characterized by visual experiences of being more distant to the world), and the M priming deficit was counterintuitive. It might indicate a dysregulated activity of the M-pathway in patients with SDS. Further research is needed to better understand this preliminary finding. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 90 | Turk Psikiyatri Derg 2014 -1 25: 157-62 |
| PMID | 25219689 |
| Title | [Insight and social functioning in deficit and nondeficit schizophrenia]. |
| Abstract | Deficit syndrome is a symptom complex characterized by primary and enduring negative symptoms, therefore it is difficult to diagnose. Poorer social functioning and insight are serious issues of schizophrenia. Both of them seems to be related with deficit schizophrenia. The present study aimed to compare insight and social functioning in patients with deficit and nondeficit schizophrenia. Our study involved 71 patients with schizophrenia recruited from the out patient clinic of psychiatry, Eski?ehir Osmangazi University, Faculty of Medicine. Patients were diagnosed as schizophrenia by using Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV (SCID-I). Participants were evaluated by The Schedule for the Deficit Syndrome (SDS) and separated to two groups: Deficit (n=30) and nondeficit (n=41) schizophrenia. All participants were administered Scale for the Assessment of Positive Symptoms (SAPS), Scale for the Assessment of Negative Symptoms (SANS), Schedule for Assessing the Three Components of Insight (SAI) and Personal and Social Performance Scale (PSP). Compared to patients with nondeficit group, non-paranoid subtype ratio was significantly higher in deficit group. The mean SAI and PSP scores were significantly lower in the deficit group than in the nondeficit group. The mean SAPS and SANS scores were significantly higher in the deficit group than in the nondeficit group. Our study emphasizes the importance of lack of insight and poorer social functioning in deficit schizophrenia. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 91 | J Ment Health 2014 Aug 23: 176-80 |
| PMID | 24784779 |
| Title | Public stigma towards patients with schizophrenia of ethnic Malay: a comparison between the general public and patients' relatives. |
| Abstract | The stigma attached to mental disorders has been recognized as a major concern in healthcare services across societies. To compare the stigmatizing attitude towards patients with schizophrenia between the general public, relatives of patient with schizophrenia and relatives of patient with neurotic illnesses. The study sample of 600 subjects of Malay families was equally divided into three groups. The sample was selected using convenience sampling. Each subject completed a seven-item Social Distance Scale (SDS) and a six-item stereotypical beliefs (SB) scale of people with schizophrenia. Appropriate statistical analysis was then conducted to compare the differences in SDS and SB scores between the groups. The scores of both SD and SB were consistent with each other, which reflected that far social distance and more negative attitudes were strongly adopted by the general public. There were significant differences in the total and most of the individual item scores of the SDS and the SB between the general public and the two relatives groups. However, the difference in the SDS scores between the relatives of patient with schizophrenia and neurotic illnesses was not significant. Among the socio-demographic factors, educational status had a stronger influenced on stigma than age and sex. The stigma towards patients with schizophrenia among the Malay community was strong. Individuals who had been exposed to patient with schizophrenia or neurotic illnesses tended to have better perceptions towards schizophrenia than the general public. The contact that promotes familiarity with mental illness, which may diminish prejudicial attitudes, attributed to the improvement. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 92 | Curr Top Behav Neurosci 2014 -1 21: 129-56 |
| PMID | 24671702 |
| Title | Electrophysiological aberrations associated with negative symptoms in schizophrenia. |
| Abstract | Clinical heterogeneity is a confound common to all of schizophrenia research. Deficit schizophrenia has been proposed as a homogeneous disease entity within the schizophrenia syndrome. The use of the Schedule for the Deficit Syndrome (SDS) has allowed the definition of a subgroup dominated by persistent and primary negative symptoms. While a number of studies have appeared over the years examining the electrophysiological correlates of the cluster of negative symptoms in schizophrenia, only a few studies have actually focused on the Deficit Syndrome (DS). In this chapter, electrophysiological investigations utilizing EEG, Evoked Potentials (EPs), polysomnography (PSG), or magnetoencephalography (MEG) to probe "negative symptoms," or "Deficit Syndrome" are reviewed. While this line of research is evidently in its infancy, two significant trends emerge. First, spectral EEG studies link increased slow wave activity during wakefulness to the prevalence of negative symptoms. Second, sleep studies point to an association between decrease in slow wave sleep and prevalence of negative symptoms. Several studies also indicate a relationship of negative symptoms with reduced alpha activity. A host of other abnormalities including sensory gating and P300 attenuation are less consistently reported. Three studies specifically addressed electrophysiology of the DS. Two of the three studies provided evidence suggesting that the DS may be a separate disease entity and not simply a severe form of schizophrenia. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 93 | Schizophr. Res. 2014 Jan 152: 73-80 |
| PMID | 23932148 |
| Title | Self-disturbances as a possible premorbid indicator of schizophrenia risk: a neurodevelopmental perspective. |
| Abstract | Self-disturbances (SDS) are increasingly identified in schizophrenia and are theorized to confer vulnerability to psychosis. Neuroimaging research has shed some light on the neural correlates of SDS in schizophrenia. But, the onset and trajectory of the neural alterations underlying SDS in schizophrenia remain incompletely understood. We hypothesize that the aberrant structure and function of brain areas (e.g., prefrontal, lateral temporal, and parietal cortical structures) comprising the "neural circuitry of self" may represent an early, premorbid (i.e., pre-prodromal) indicator of schizophrenia risk. Consistent with neurodevelopmental models, we argue that "early" (i.e., perinatal) dysmaturational processes (e.g., abnormal cortical neural cell migration and mini-columnar formation) affecting key prefrontal (e.g., medial prefrontal cortex), lateral temporal cortical (e.g., superior temporal sulcus), and parietal (e.g., inferior parietal lobule) structures involved in self-processing may lead to subtle disruptions of "self" during childhood in persons at risk for schizophrenia. During adolescence, progressive neurodevelopmental alterations (e.g., aberrant synaptic pruning) affecting the neural circuitry of self may contribute to worsening of SDS. This could result in the emergence of prodromal symptoms and, eventually, full-blown psychosis. To highlight why adolescence may be a period of heightened risk for SDS, we first summarize the literature regarding the neural correlates of self in typically developing children. Next, we present evidence from neuroimaging studies in genetic high-risk youth suggesting that fronto-temporal-parietal structures mediating self-reflection may be abnormal in the premorbid period. Our goal is that the ideas presented here might provide future directions for research into the neurobiology of SDS during the pre-psychosis development of youth at risk for schizophrenia. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 94 | Clin Schizophr Relat Psychoses 2014 Apr 8: 28-35B |
| PMID | 23428787 |
| Title | Negative symptoms in schizophrenia. |
| Abstract | Clinical heterogeneity is a confound common to all of schizophrenia research. Deficit schizophrenia has been proposed as a homogeneous disease entity within the schizophrenia syndrome. Utilizing the Schedule for the Deficit Syndrome (SDS) has allowed the definition of a subgroup dominated by persistent clusters of negative symptoms. While a number of studies have appeared over the years examining the electrophysiological correlates of the cluster of negative symptoms in schizophrenia, only a few studies have actually focused on the deficit syndrome (DS). PubMed as well as MEDLINE were searched for all reports indexed for "negative symptoms" or "deficit syndrome" and one of the following electrophysiology assessment tools: electroencephalography (EEG), evoked potentials (EPs), or polysomnography (PSG). While this line of research is evidently in its infancy, two significant trends emerge. First, spectral EEG studies link increased slow wave activity during wakefulness to the prevalence of negative symptoms. Secondly, sleep studies point to an association between decrease in slow wave sleep and prevalence of negative symptoms. Several studies also indicate a relationship of negative symptoms with reduced alpha activity. A host of other abnormalities--including sensory gating and P300 attenuation--are less consistently reported. Two studies specifically addressed electrophysiology of the DS. Both studies provided evidence suggesting that the DS may be a separate disease entity and not simply a severe form of schizophrenia. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 95 | Compr Psychiatry 2015 Oct 62: 80-5 |
| PMID | 26343470 |
| Title | Serum brain-derived neurotrophic factor levels and psychotic symptoms in heroin dependence. |
| Abstract | Psychotic symptoms are commonly observed among heroin users. Low serum brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) levels have been reported in schizophrenia and psychosis; however, studies assessing the relationship between serum BDNF levels and psychotic symptoms in heroin dependence are lacking. A total of 31 heroin-dependent patients who had never experienced psychotic symptoms during heroin consumption and 21 patients with a history of psychotic symptoms were consecutively recruited. We measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) serum BDNF levels during early abstinence. A gender- and age-matched sample of healthy controls was also recruited and underwent measurement of BDNF. BDNF levels were significantly lower in patients with psychotic symptoms than in those without psychotic symptoms (P<0.001). BDNF levels were not found to be correlated with sex, age, age of onset, duration of heroin use, average daily dose of heroin use, frequency of heroin use, SDS scores, BAI scores and BDI scores in the psychotic subsamples (all P>0.05). Our findings suggest that heroin-dependent patients with psychotic symptoms share some of the neurotrophic insult that characterizes schizophrenia and psychosis. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 96 | Schizophr Bull 2015 Sep -1: -1 |
| PMID | 26385763 |
| Title | Neurobiological Models of Self-Disorders in Early Schizophrenia. |
| Abstract | Self-disorders (SDS) (from the German Ichstörungen) are alterations of the first-person perspective, long associated with schizophrenia, particularly in early phases. Although psychopathological features of SDS continue to be studied, their neurobiological underpinnings are unknown. This makes it difficult to integrate SDS into contemporary models of psychosis. The present review aims to address this issue, starting from an historical excursus revealing an interconnection between neuroscientific models and the origin of the psychopathological concept of SDS. Subsequently, the more recent neurobiological models related to SDS are discussed, particularly with respect to the onset of schizophrenia. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 97 | Pharmacol Rep 2015 Jun 67: 442-5 |
| PMID | 25933951 |
| Title | Functional polymorphism of matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP9) gene is not associated with schizophrenia and with its deficit subtype. |
| Abstract | The deficit subtype of schizophrenia is hypothesized to constitute a pathophysiologically distinct subgroup of schizophrenia patients suffering from enduring, idiopathic negative symptoms and various neuropsychological deficits. Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) are extracellularly acting endopeptidases the substrates of which are matrix and adhesion molecules. Recently, MMP9 has been shown to be involved in various forms of synaptic plasticity, learning and memory consolidation. The primary aim of the present study was to evaluate associations between the functional MMP-9 -1562C/T gene polymorphism and the deficit and non-deficit subtypes of schizophrenia. The study was conducted between 2009 and 2012. Deficit schizophrenia was diagnosed using the SDS. The sample consisted of 468 patients, Caucasians, of Polish descent with ICD 10 diagnosis of schizophrenia: 189 [51% males] were included in a non-deficit subgroup, 279 patients [53% males] were included in a deficit subgroup. The control group consisted of 532 subjects, Caucasians, of Polish descent [51% males]. MMP-9 -1562C/T gene polymorphism was genotyped using the fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) method and the Light Cycler System 2.0. The frequencies of genotypes and alleles did not differ between the schizophrenia patients and control group. The deficit and non-deficit patients did not differ in terms of the genotype and allele frequencies. No differences were found in genotype and allele frequencies between the deficit patients and the controls and between the non-deficit patients and the controls. We found no evidence for the association between the functional MMP-9 -1562C/T gene polymorphism and deficit/non-deficit subtypes of schizophrenia. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 98 | Psychopathology 2015 -1 48: 60-4 |
| PMID | 25401765 |
| Title | Self-disorder and brain processing of proprioception in schizophrenia spectrum patients: a re-analysis. |
| Abstract | Anomalies of self-awareness (self-disorders, SDS) are theorized to be basic to schizophrenia psychopathology. We have previously observed dysfunction of brain processing of proprioception in schizophrenia spectrum disorders (SZS). We hypothesized that SDS could be associated with abnormalities of early contralateral proprioceptive evoked oscillatory brain activity. We investigated the association between proprioceptive evoked potential components and SDS in a re-analysis of data from a subsample (n = 12) of SZS patients who had previously been observed with deviant proprioceptive evoked potentials and interviewed with the Examination of Anomalous Self-Experience (EASE) scale. Higher EASE scores (i.e. increased SD) were associated with lower peak parietal gamma frequencies and higher peak beta amplitudes over frontal and parietal electrodes in the left hemisphere following right-hand proprioceptive stimulation. Disorders of self-awareness may be associated with dysfunction of early phases of somatosensory processing. The findings are potentially relevant to our understanding of the pathophysiology of schizophrenia, but further studies are needed. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 99 | Psychopathology 2015 -1 48: 310-6 |
| PMID | 26346129 |
| Title | Self-Disorders, Neurocognition and Rationality in Schizophrenia: A Preliminary Study. |
| Abstract | Although the very idea that the generative disorder in schizophrenia is a disturbance of the self is as old as the schizophrenia concept itself, empirical studies have only recently emerged, documenting that anomalous self-experiences (i.e. self-disorders, SDS) aggregate in schizophrenia spectrum disorders but not in other mental disorders. The aim of this study is to explore potential associations between SDS, neurocognitive performance, rationality and IQ in patients with schizophrenia. The sample comprises 31 patients diagnosed with schizophrenia (DSM-IV). All patients underwent comprehensive evaluation. SDS were assessed with the Examination of Anomalous Self-Experience scale. Neurocognitive performance was measured with 4 PC-implemented subtests from the Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery. Rationality was measured using syllogism tests. The IQ was indexed by a summary score of 4 IST-2000-R computerized subtests. No correlation was found between SDS and neurocognitive performance or between SDS and IQ. SDS were found to correlate with rationality. Neurocognitive performance correlated with rationality, and both correlated with IQ, respectively. The lack of correlation between SDS and neurocognitive performance is consistent with the results from the only previous study exploring this issue, suggesting that SDS depict something essential to schizophrenia, whereas neurocognitive impairment does not. The correlation between SDS and rationality indicates that the syllogism tests reflect something central for schizophrenia, but the result needs further corroboration from larger, empirical studies. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 100 | Ann Gen Psychiatry 2015 -1 14: 40 |
| PMID | 26600866 |
| Title | Disability assessment as an outcome measure: a comparative study of Nigerian outpatients with schizophrenia and healthy control. |
| Abstract | schizophrenia is a chronic mental disorder that leads to disability in several aspects of the individual's personal, social, and occupational functioning. This study assesses and compares the level of disability among Nigerian outpatients with schizophrenia and healthy controls (HC). A comparative cross-sectional study among 100 schizophrenia outpatients with an ICD-10 diagnosis and 100 HC was conducted over a 4-month period. They completed a questionnaire containing the Zung's Self-Rating Depression Scale (SDS), the World Health Organization Disability Assessment Schedule-Second Version (WHODAS-II). Symptoms of schizophrenia were assessed with the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS). Student's t tests and Chi-square were used to compare patient with schizophrenia and healthy control. Pearson correlation and multiple linear regression analyses were used to assess the relationships of socio-demographic and clinical variable with disability. The patients with schizophrenia reported greater disability than the HC on most of the disability domains of WHODAS-II. They also reported significantly higher mean Zung's SDS scores than the HC. Depressive symptoms, negative symptoms, and PANSS total were significantly related to all the WHODAS-II domains. The disability summary score was significantly predicted by depressive symptoms, negative and positive symptoms of schizophrenia, number of active symptoms (relapse) of schizophrenia, and marital status [F (5, 94) = 23.90, p < 0.001]. schizophrenia is a disabling disorder that affects different aspects of a patient's life. Treatment strategies that target these different aspects may help in reducing disability. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 101 | Turk Psikiyatri Derg 2015 -1 26: 229-35 |
| PMID | 26731019 |
| Title | [The Relationship of Deficit Syndrome with Clinical Symptoms, Summer Births and Heritability in Patients with Schizophrenia]. |
| Abstract | The aim of this study was to compare deficit schizophrenia patients with non-deficit schizophrenia patients for negative and positive symptome scores, rate of summer births, and rate of familial history of psychosis. 110 patients with schizophrenia diagnosed via Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV (SCID-I) aged between 18-65 were included in the study. All the patients were evaluated using the Scale for the Assessment of Negative Symptoms (SANS), Scale for the Assessment of Positive Symptoms (SAPS), and The Schedule for the Deficit Syndrome (SDS), and sociodemographic information was obtained. The deficit syndrome group had higher negative and positive scores compared to the non-deficit group. The rate of summer births were higher in the deficit group. Although the rate of positive family history for psychosis was higher in deficit group compared with the non-deficit group, the difference did not achieve statistical significance. Our results that depict higher severity of negative and positive symptom scores and higher rate of summer births with deficit schizophrenia, provides more evidence that deficit and non-deficit schizophrenia are different subtypes having different pathophysiologies. But statistically nonsignificant difference of positive familial history between two groups suggests that the thesis of deficit schizophrenia may be related to genetic factors more than enviromental factors needs to be invesigated further. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 102 | Can J Psychiatry 2015 Oct 60: 451-9 |
| PMID | 26720192 |
| Title | Explicit and Implicit Attitudes of Canadian Psychiatrists Toward People With Mental Illness. |
| Abstract | People with mental illness suffer stigma and discrimination across various contexts, including the health care setting, and clinicians' attitudes play an important role in perpetuating stigma. Effective stigma-reduction interventions for physicians require a better understanding of explicit (that is, conscious and controllable) and implicit (that is, subconscious and automatic) forms of bias, and of predictors and moderators of stigma. Members of a Canadian university psychiatry department and of the Canadian Psychiatric Association (CPA) were invited to participate in a web-based study consisting of 2 measures of explicit attitudes, the Social Distance Scale (SDS) and the Opening Minds Scale for Health Care Providers (OMS-HC), and 1 measure of implicit attitudes, the Implicit Association Test (IAT). Thirty-five psychiatry residents and 68 psychiatrists completed the study (response rates of 12.1% for the university sample and 3.3% for the CPA sample). Participants desired greater social distance from the vignette patient with schizophrenia. Mean IAT scores, although negative, did not reach the threshold for a meaningful effect size. Patient contact positively predicted IAT scores, while age, sex, and level of training (resident, compared with psychiatrist) did not. Neither patient contact nor implicit attitudes predicted SDS or OMS-HC scores. Psychiatrists did not differ from psychiatry residents on any measures of explicit or implicit attitudes toward mental illness. Explicit attitudes toward people with mental illness were relatively negative; implicit attitudes were neither negative nor positive; and implicit and explicit attitudes were not correlated. Greater patient contact predicted more positive implicit attitudes, but did not predict explicit attitudes. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 103 | Psychopathology 2015 -1 48: 184-91 |
| PMID | 25896541 |
| Title | Mirroring the self: testing neurophysiological correlates of disturbed self-experience in schizophrenia spectrum. |
| Abstract | Self-disorders (SDS) have been described as a core schizophrenia spectrum vulnerability phenotype, both in classic and contemporary psychopathological literature. However, such a core phenotype has not yet been investigated adopting a trans-domain approach that combines the phenomenological and the neurophysiological levels of analysis. The aim of this study is to investigate the relation between SDS and subtle, schizophrenia-specific impairments of emotional resonance that are supposed to reflect abnormalities in the mirror neurons mechanism. Specifically, we tested whether electromyographic response to emotional stimuli (i.e. a proxy for subtle changes in facial mimicry and related motor resonance mechanisms) would predict the occurrence of anomalous subjective experiences (i.e. SDS). Eighteen schizophrenia spectrum (SzSp) patients underwent a comprehensive psychopathological examination and were contextually tested with a multimodal paradigm, recording facial electromyographic activity of muscles in response to positive and negative emotional stimuli. Experiential anomalies were explored with the Bonn Scale for the Assessment of Basic Symptoms (BSABS) and then condensed into rational subscales mapping SzSp anomalous self-experiences. SzSp patients showed an imbalance in emotional motor resonance with a selective bias toward negative stimuli, as well as a multisensory integration impairment. Multiple regression analysis showed that electromyographic facial reactions in response to negative stimuli presented in auditory modality specifically and strongly correlated with SD subscore. The study confirms the potential of SDS as target phenotype for neurobiological research and encourages research into disturbed motor/emotional resonance as possible body-level correlate of disturbed subjective experiences in SzSp. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 104 | Encephale 2016 Apr 42: 165-71 |
| PMID | 26923997 |
| Title | [Scale for assessing negative symptoms in schizophrenia: A systematic review]. |
| Abstract | Negative symptoms are a fundamental dimension of schizophrenia despite their limited role in the international diagnostic classification. Although a consensual definition seems to be attempted regarding the main negative dimensions (anhedonia, alogia, social withdrawal, blunted affect, avolition), several standardized assessment scales have been created. The objective of this study was to identify a set of unidimensional instruments which allows an assessment of negative symptoms in schizophrenia and also to identify their general characteristics and the items included. Inclusion criteria were: (a) the unidimensional assessment scales of negative symptoms of schizophrenia; (b) instruments in English (with French versions if possible); (c) all assessment instruments, the oldest and the most recent. The investigation ended in February 2013. Twelve unidimensional instruments were identified with only one of them based on a self-administered survey (MAP-SR). The number of items included is from 6 (SDS) to 25 (SANS). The fastest instrument is the HEN (5-10min) and the longest is the SANS (30min). The MASS needs an evaluation by another person (family or care-giver). Most instruments need to be handled and take place during a semi-structured or structured psychiatric interview. The SANS allows an assessment of the most important number of negative domains (11 domains). On the other side, we have the MAP-SR (3 domains). The most frequently evaluated domains are emotional blunting, alogia, social withdrawal, anhedonia and avolition. On the other side, we have mood and thought disorders. Only SDS allows to distinguish the primary and secondary negative symptoms. The oldest instruments (SANS, NSA-16, SDS) are more complicated to handle and to use. The SANS is the most complete instrument but there are more recent instruments which are easier to use and handle (BNSS, CAINS). Using a self-evaluation survey, MAP-SR is judicious as this type of evaluation is reliable. However, in this case, the assessment covers only a limited part of the negative symptoms. Despite some progress in the definition, assessment and treatment of negative symptoms and despite new scales further instruments which are easy to use in clinical practice and integrating the patient's self-report are needed. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |
| 105 | J Abnorm Psychol 2016 Feb 125: 299-309 |
| PMID | 26854511 |
| Title | Vocal expression in schizophrenia: Less than meets the ear. |
| Abstract | Abnormalities in nonverbal communication are a hallmark of schizophrenia. Results from studies using symptom rating scales suggest that these abnormalities are profound (i.e., 3-5 SDS) and occur across virtually every channel of vocal expression. Computerized acoustic analytic technologies, used to overcome practical and psychometric limitations with symptom rating scales, have found much more benign and isolated abnormalities. To better understand vocal deficits in schizophrenia and to advance acoustic analytic technologies for clinical and research applications, we examined archived speech samples from 5 separate studies, each using different speaking tasks (patient N = 309; control N = 117). We sought to: (a) use Principal Component Analysis (PCA) to identify independent vocal expression measures from a large set of variables, (b) quantify how patients with schizophrenia are abnormal with respect to these variables, (c) evaluate the impact of demographic and contextual factors (e.g., study site, speaking task), and (d) examine the relationship between clinically-rated psychiatric symptoms and vocal variables. PCA identified 7 independent markers of vocal expression. Most of these vocal variables varied considerably as a function of context and many were associated with demographic factors. After controlling for context and demographics, there were no meaningful differences in vocal expression between patients and controls. Within patients, vocal variables were associated with a range of psychiatric symptoms-though only pause length was significantly associated with clinically rated negative symptoms. The discussion centers on explaining the apparent discordance between clinical and computerized speech measures. (PsycINFO Database Record |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia, schizophrenic, schizophrenics, schizotypy, schizotypal |