Neuropsychological correlates of schizophrenic syndromes in patients treated with atypical neuroleptics

2001 ◽  
Vol 16 (6) ◽  
pp. 354-361 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Moritz ◽  
B. Andresen ◽  
D. Jacobsen ◽  
K. Mersmann ◽  
U. Wilke ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Verbal Fluency ◽  
Negative Symptoms ◽  
Digit Span ◽  
Atypical Neuroleptics ◽  
Schizophrenic Patients ◽  
Trail Making ◽  
Neurocognitive Dysfunctions ◽  
Neurocognitive Tasks ◽  
Negative Syndrome ◽  
Typical Neuroleptics

SummaryThere is widespread evidence that schizophrenic symptomatology is best represented by three syndromes (positive, negative, disorganized). Both the disorganized and negative syndrome have been found to correlate with several neurocognitive dysfunctions. However, previous studies investigated samples predominantly treated with typical neuroleptics, which frequently induce parkinsonian symptoms that are hard to disentangle from primary negative symptoms and may have inflated correlations with neurocognition. A newly developed psychopathological instrument called the Positive and Negative and Disorganized Symptoms Scale (PANADSS) was evaluated in 60 schizophrenic patients. Forty-seven participants treated with atypical neuroleptics performed several neurocognitive tasks.A three-factor solution of schizophrenic symptomatology emerged. Negative symptomatology was associated with diminished creative verbal fluency and digit span backward, whereas disorganization was significantly correlated with impaired Stroop, WCST and Trail-Making Test B performance.Data suggest that disorganization is associated with tasks that demand executive functioning. Previous findings reporting correlations between negative symptomatology and neurocognition may have been confounded by the adverse consequences of typical neuroleptics.

A comparison of cognitive functioning in acute schizophrenia and depression

2013 ◽  
Vol 25 (6) ◽  
pp. 334-341 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tina Gooren ◽  
Peter Schlattmann ◽  
Peter Neu
Keyword(s):  
Major Depression ◽  
Cognitive Deficits ◽  
Verbal Fluency ◽  
Verbal Learning ◽  
Trail Making Test ◽  
Acute Schizophrenia ◽  
Wechsler Memory Scale ◽  
Schizophrenic Patients ◽  
Trail Making ◽  
Unipolar Major Depression

ObjectiveEven though cognitive deficits are well recognised in schizophrenia and depression, direct comparisons between the disorders are scarce in literature. This study aims to assess specificity and degree of cognitive deficits in inpatients with acute schizophrenia and unipolar major depression.MethodsA neuropsychological test battery was administered to 76 schizophrenic patients, 102 patients with unipolar major depression and 85 healthy controls (HCs), assessing verbal learning [Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test (RAVLT)], processing speed (Trail Making Test), verbal fluency and visual memory (Wechsler Memory Scale-Revised test).ResultsBoth patient groups were significantly impaired compared with HCs with regard to all test outcomes. The schizophrenia group (SG) performed significantly worse in the Wechsler Memory Scale and verbal fluency than the depression group (DG). The DG reached significantly lower scores than the SG in the RAVLT delayed recall subtest. No significant group difference between SG and DG was found for the Trail Making Test and the RAVLT direct recall trails.ConclusionOur results indicate that cognitive impairment is present in both disorders. Schizophrenic patients performed worse than patients with unipolar depression in only two of the administered tests. Differences in cognitive performance between the groups are not as general as often assumed. Therefore, during the acute phase of illness, a diagnostic classification on the grounds of the patients’ neurocognitive performance has to be done with caution.

Are schizophrenics neuropsychologically impaired affected psychotics? Neuropsychological performance and personality traits in relatives

2000 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 104-104
Author(s):  
R.M. Murray ◽  
CM. Gilvarry ◽  
A. Russell ◽  
D. Hemsley
Keyword(s):  
Personality Traits ◽  
Verbal Fluency ◽  
Neuropsychological Deficits ◽  
Verbal Fluency Test ◽  
Schizophrenia Spectrum ◽  
Schizophrenic Patients ◽  
Adult Reading ◽  
Trail Making ◽  
National Adult Reading Test ◽  
Fluency Test

Neuropsychological deficits are found in both schizophrenic patients and their relatives, and some studies have shown similar, but less severe, deficits in affective psychotic patients and their relatives. We set out to establish – whether schizophrenia spectrum personality traits are more common in the relatives of schizophrenic patients than relatives of affective psychotic patients; – what is the relationship between spectrum personality traits and neuropsychological deficits in these relatives.Relatives were interviewed using the International Personality Disorder Examination (IPDE), and also completed the National Adult Reading Test (NART), the Trail Making Test (TMT: Parts A and B) and Thurstone's Verbal Fluency Test (TVFT). Spectrum personality traits were equally common in the 129 relatives of schizophrenic and 106 relatives of affective psychotic patients. Relatives of psychotic patients who themselves had high paranoid traits had lower NART scores than those without such personality traits (p=0.007);similarly, those with high schizoid personality traits took longer to complete the TMT, part B than those without such traits (p=0.0l); and relatives with high schizotypal traits generated significantly fewer words on the verbal fluency test than those without such traits (p=0.04).

scholarly journals Neurocognition and social cognition in remitted first-episode schizophrenia: correlation with VEGF serum levels

2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yaqin Zhao ◽  
Wenhuan Xiao ◽  
Kuanyu Chen ◽  
Qiongqiong Zhan ◽  
Fei Ye ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Social Cognition ◽  
Digit Span ◽  
Verbal Learning ◽  
Serum Levels ◽  
First Episode ◽  
Schizophrenic Patients ◽  
Trail Making ◽  
Learning Test ◽  
First Episode Schizophrenia ◽  
Endothelial Growth Factor

Abstract Background Accumulating evidence suggests that serum vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in many neurobiological processes potentially contributes to the pathophysiology of psychiatric disorders, particularly cognitive decline. The purpose of this study was to explore the differences in neurocognition, social cognition and VEGF among remitted first-episode schizophrenic patients, non-remitters and normal control subjects. Moreover, we investigated the association between serum VEGF levels and cognitive functions. Method 65 remission (RS) and 45 nonremission patients (NRS) after first-episode schizophrenia, as well as 58 healthy controls (HC) were enrolled in this study. Social cognition was assessed using the Chinese Facial Emotion Test (CFET); neurocognition was measured with a test battery consisting of Hopkins Verbal Learning Test-Revised, Verbal Fluency Test, Trail Making Tests, Digit Span Tests (DST) and Stroop Tests. Blood samples were collected for VEGF measurements. Data was analyzed with SPSS 22.0 (Chicago, IL, USA). Results On nearly all neurocognitive tests (except for DST), RS performed significantly worse than HC but better than NRS (P < 0.05). NRS, but not RS, exhibited markedly poorer social cognition than HC (except for Happiness and Surprise subscales of the CFET) (P < 0.05). VEGF levels showed a gradient change among three groups (HC > RS > NRS). Conclusion Compared to HC, RS demonstrated poorer neurocognitive but intact social cognition functioning. These results indicate that VEGF levels decreased gradually with the severity of cognitive impairment in schizophrenia. VEGF may be involved in the pathological mechanism of cognitive performance in RS.

Motor neurological soft signs are strongly correlated with verbal fluency among patients with schizophrenia attending UKMMC psychiatric clinic

2011 ◽  
Vol 26 (S2) ◽  
pp. 1533-1533
Author(s):  
H. Zakaria ◽  
A.H. Abdul Rahman
Keyword(s):  
Verbal Fluency ◽  
Rating Scale ◽  
Involuntary Movement ◽  
Digit Span ◽  
Brain Dysfunction ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Psychiatric Clinic ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Neurological Soft Signs ◽  
Trail Making

IntroductionNeurological soft signs (NSS) are subtle indicator of brain dysfunction, which are present in excess among patients with schizophrenia. Its clinical significance remains unclear despite extensive researches.ObjectiveTo determine the proportion of schizophrenia patients who have motor NSS and then to compare the performance in verbal fluency between these two groups; with and without motor NSS.MethodThis cross-sectional study utilized the Brief Motor Scale (BMS) to investigate the presence of motor NSS in 80 schizophrenia patients attended Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Medical Centre (UKMMC) psychiatric clinic. The diagnosis was confirmed by Mini International Neuropsychiatic Interview (MINI). Symptomatology and abnormal motor movement were assessed using the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS) and Abnormal Involuntary Movement Scale (AIMS) respectively. A brief battery of cognitive tests covering aspects of attention, working memory and executive function was administered. Bivariate and multivariate analyses were applied to look for any relationship between study factors.ResultsMajority of schizophrenia patients (68.8%) in this study have motor NSS. The motor NSS were correlated with verbal fluency, digit span forward, digit span backward, and trail making B but not with trail making A (p < 0.05). However, verbal fluency was the only factor that remained significantly correlated with motor NSS after multivariate analysis.ConclusionsThe assessment of motor NSS represents a brief, inexpensive and meaningful tool in psychiatry. Together with verbal fluency, it has the potential as an illness marker and a link between neurobiological research and clinical practice.

Carbonyl stress in schizophrenia

2014 ◽  
Vol 42 (2) ◽  
pp. 468-472 ◽  
Author(s):  
Masanari Itokawa ◽  
Mitsuhiro Miyashita ◽  
Makoto Arai ◽  
Toshio Miyata
Keyword(s):  
Vitamin B6 ◽  
Negative Symptoms ◽  
Therapeutic Agent ◽  
Active Form ◽  
Carbonyl Stress ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Treatment Resistant ◽  
Syndrome Scale ◽  
Schizophrenic Patients ◽  
Negative Syndrome

We have identified idiopathic carbonyl stress in a subpopulation of schizophrenic patients. We first identified a patient with a mutation in GLO1 (glyoxalase I) who showed increased AGE (advanced glycation end-product) levels and decreased vitamin B6 levels. By applying the observations from this rare case to the general schizophrenic population, we were able to identify a subset of patients (20%) for whom carbonyl stress may represent a causative pathophysiological process. Genetic defects in GLO1 increase the risk of carbonyl stress 5-fold, and the resulting increased AGE levels correlate significantly with PANSS (Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale) scored negative symptoms. Pyridoxamine, an active form of vitamin B6 and scavenger for carbonyl stress, could represent a novel and efficacious therapeutic agent for these treatment-resistant symptoms. In the present article, we describe a unique research approach to identify the causative process in the pathophysiology of a subset of schizophrenia. Our findings could form the basis of a schizophrenia subtype classification within this very heterogeneous disease and ultimately lead to better targeted therapy.

Discriminant cognitive factors in responder and non-responder patients with schizophrenia

1999 ◽  
Vol 14 (8) ◽  
pp. 442-450 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. Stip ◽  
I. Lussier ◽  
E. Ngan ◽  
A. Mendrek ◽  
P. Liddle
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Assessment ◽  
Verbal Fluency ◽  
Short Term Memory ◽  
Function Analysis ◽  
Digit Span ◽  
Long Term Memory ◽  
Semantic Fluency ◽  
Term Memory ◽  
Response Status ◽  
Schizophrenic Patients

SummaryTo identify which improvements in cognitive function are associated with symptom resolution in schizophrenic patients treated with atypical antipsychotics. Design: a prospective open trial with atypical neuroleptics (risperidone, clozapine, quetiapine). Setting: Inpatient and outpatient units, Institute of Psychiatry. Patients: Thirty-nine patients with schizophrenia according to DSM-IV criteria were included. Clinical and cognitive assessment were done at baseline (T0) and again after six months of treatment (T2). Twenty-five patients completed the trial. Interventions: New-generation antipsychotics during six months. Patients were considered as responders if their PANSS score decreased at least 20% (n = 15) and non-responders if it did not (n = 10). Outcome measures: a computerized cognitive assessment comprised tests of short-term-memory (digit span), explicit long-term memory (word pair learning), divided attention, selective attention and verbal fluency (orthographic and semantic). Clinical assessment included PANSS and ESRS. Results: A discriminant function analysis was performed to determine which changes in cognitive performance predicted symptomatic response status. Semantic fluency and orthographic fluency were significant predictors. Together they correctly predicted responder status in 88% of cases. Memory was not a significant predictor of symptomatic response. Conclusion: Verbal fluency discriminated the responder from the non-responder group during a pharmacological treatment.

scholarly journals Cognitive Functions across the GNB3C825TPolymorphism in an Elderly Italian Population

2013 ◽  
Vol 2013 ◽  
pp. 1-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Edoardo Casiglia ◽  
Nunzia Giordano ◽  
Valérie Tikhonoff ◽  
Giovanni Boschetti ◽  
Alberto Mazza ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Verbal Fluency ◽  
Neuropsychological Tests ◽  
Mini Mental State Examination ◽  
Digit Span ◽  
Italian Population ◽  
Test Figure ◽  
Elderly Men ◽  
Trail Making ◽  
Figure Drawing ◽  
State Examination

To verify whether theC825Tpolymorphism of the GNB3 influences the response to neuropsychological tests, mini-mental state examination, digit span (DS), immediate and delayed prose memory, memory with interference at 10 and 30 seconds (MI 10 and 30), trail making tests (TMTs) A and B, abstraction task, verbal fluency (VF) test, figure drawing and copying, overlapping figures test and clock test were performed in 220 elderly men and women free from clinical dementia and from neurological and psychiatric diseases randomly taken from the Italian general population and analysed across theC825Tpolymorphism. The performance of DS, immediate and delayed prose memory, VF, and TMTs was worse in subjects who were TT for the polymorphism in comparison to the C-carriers. The performance of all tests declined with age. In the case of DS, immediate and delayed prose memory, MI 10 and VF, this trend was maintained in the C-carriers but not in TT. In the case of prose memory, of memory with interference, and of VF, schooling reduced the detrimental interaction between age and genotype. TheC825Tpolymorphism of GNB3 gene therefore influences memory and verbal fluency, being additive to the effects of age and partially mitigated by schooling.

scholarly journals Clinical and Dynamic Characteristics оf Therapeutic Remissions after Acute Paranoid Psychoses in Schizophrenic Patients Treated with Antipsychotics of Various Generations

Psychiatry ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 21-31
Author(s):  
S. A. Stolyarov
Keyword(s):  
Therapeutic Effect ◽  
Negative Symptoms ◽  
Positive Symptoms ◽  
Psychometric Assessment ◽  
Atypical Neuroleptics ◽  
High Quality ◽  
Comparative Aspect ◽  
Icd 10 ◽  
Schizophrenic Patients

Background: the comparative aspect of the clinical-diagnostic and prognostic evaluation of long-term remissions treated with antipsychotics of various generations in patients with shift-like schizophrenia remains poorly studied and retains scientific and practical actuality. The purpose of the study: a comparative study of the therapeutic effect of antipsychotics of different generations on clinical-psychopathological peculiarities and the dynamics of 2-year remissions after acute paranoid states in patients with shift-like schizophrenia. Patients and methods: 34 female patients (average age made up 26.9 years old) were diagnosed in shift-like schizophrenia with a clinical picture of the attack as acute paranoid syndrome (F20.02 according to ICD-10). 16 patients received treatment with typical neuroleptics (TN), other 18 patients received atypical neuroleptics (ATN). The study was conducted as an open prospective, using clinical-psychopathological, clinical-catamnestic and clinical-psychometric methods. The mental state of patients was assessed four times: upon admission to the hospital in acute psychosis (1 point), when entering remission (2 points), after 1 and 2 years of remission (3 and 4 points). In psychometric assessment was used calculated for 1 patient indices of the main total score of all signs (MTS) and main score of 1 sign (MS) of the PANSS scale and its subscales of positive (P), negative (N) and general psychopathological (G) syndromes. Results: at the end of the active treatment with both types of antipsychotics at the 2 point of assessment, was reduced MS of positive symptoms P+G subscales from 3.3 to 1.7 scores on TN and from 3.8 to 2.2 scores on ATN, with a remission and stabilization of the achieved improvement with reduction of MS at 4 points up to 1.5. MS of negative symptoms by the 2 nd  year of remission on ATN decreased from 2.7 to 2.0 in parallel with the reduction of positive signs by P + G; on TN there was an increase in MS indices of subscale N from 2.3 to 2.7 scores. The assessment of negative disorders is discussed as “secondary” negative due to the phenomenologically is assumed with the symptoms of the positive syndrome and the effects of neurolepsy. Conclusion: TN and ATN exhibit a similar “antipsychotic” effect in the treatment of acute paranoid psychoses in shift-like schizophrenia patients with the formation of long-term high quality remissions, stabilization of degrees of reducted productive psychopathological symptoms and with the absence of the progredience disease. To optimize the therapeutic effect of both types of antipsychotics, it is recommended correction of the regime and the term in transition from active to maintenance therapy and prescription of neurolepsy correctors to reduce severity in the picture of “secondary” negative symptoms.

Poor memory, negative symptoms and abnormal movements in never-treated Indian patients with schizophrenia

1997 ◽  
Vol 171 (4) ◽  
pp. 360-363 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. G. McCreadie ◽  
S. Latha ◽  
R. Thara ◽  
R. Padmavathi ◽  
J. R. Ayankaran
Keyword(s):  
Negative Symptoms ◽  
Normal Subjects ◽  
Treated Group ◽  
Confounding Variable ◽  
Wechsler Memory Scale ◽  
Abnormal Movements ◽  
Syndrome Scale ◽  
Schizophrenic Patients ◽  
Negative Syndrome ◽  
Poor Memory

BackgroundCognitive impairment, frequently found in patients with schizophrenia, may be associated with negative symptoms and dyskinesia. However, antipsychotic medication may be a confounding variable. These putative associations may be clarified by examining never-treated patients.MethodNever-treated elderly schizophrenic patients (n=19) living in south-east India were compared with treated patients (n=25) and normal subjects (n=55). Memory was assessed by the Wechsler Memory Scale, negative symptoms by the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale, and dyskinesia by the Abnormal Involuntary Movements Scale.ResultsNormal subjects had a higher mean memory quotient than patients. There were no significant differences between never-treated and treated patients. Negative symptoms were associated with a poorer memory in the never-treated group. There was no association between memory and dyskinesia.ConclusionsThere is an association in never-treated patients between a poorer memory and negative symptoms, but not between a poorer memory and dyskinesia.

scholarly journals THE DIFFERENCES SCORE OF POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE SYNDROME SCALE NEGATIVE SCALE BETWEEN SCHIZOPHRENIC PATIENTS THAT RECEIVED RISPERIDONE AND RISPERIDONE WITH FLUOXETINE

2018 ◽  
Vol 11 (13) ◽  
pp. 39
Author(s):  
Ritha M Sembiring ◽  
Mustafa M Amin ◽  
Elmeida Effendy
Keyword(s):  
Negative Symptoms ◽  
Study Finding ◽  
Positive Symptom ◽  
Open Label ◽  
Syndrome Scale ◽  
Classification Of Diseases ◽  
Primary Finding ◽  
Schizophrenic Patients ◽  
International Statistical Classification ◽  
Negative Syndrome

 Objective: Negative symptoms are relatively common with a recent study finding that nearly 58% of outpatients had at least one negative symptom, negative symptoms are better predictors of functioning than positive symptom. Antidepressants have been a natural and common choice for the treatment of negative symptoms considering the conceptual proximity of their mode of action and the etiological hypotheses involving related neurotransmitters. This study examined differences negative symptoms scale score between patient that received only risperidone and risperidone with fluoxetine.Method: The sample consist of 44 patients with a diagnosis of schizophrenia according to ICD-10 (International Statistical Classification of Diseases), male, age ranged was between 30 and 50 years, signed informed consent before entering into study which had been conducted at the Prof. Dr. M Ildrem Mental Health Hospital Medan Sumatera Utara Indonesia. The study was designed for 4 weeks, open-label, divided into two groups of 22 each, (1) receiving 4 mg/day risperidone with 20 mg/day fluoxetine and (2) receiving only 4 mg/day risperidone. Negative symptoms were assessed using positive and negative syndrome scale (PANSS).Results: The primary finding of the trial was a significant reduction in score ofnegativescale in patients receiving risperidone with fluoxetinecompared to patients receiving only risperidone at the end of 4 weeks. All the subscales of PANSS negative symptoms scale demonstrated significant improvement.Conclusions: In patients with schizophrenia, treating negative symptoms with adjunctive to fluoxetine appears to carry the benefit of improving negative symptoms.

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