scholarly journals The Implementation and Review of Cognitive Remediation Training for First Episode Psychosis in Singapore

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nigel Ian Ming Chong ◽  
Yogeswary Maniam ◽  
Yi Chian Chua ◽  
Charmaine Tang
Keyword(s):  
Verbal Memory ◽  
Cognitive Abilities ◽  
Statistical Significance ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Cognitive Remediation ◽  
First Episode Psychosis ◽  
Early Psychosis ◽  
First Episode ◽  
Educational Approach ◽  
Episode Psychosis

Objective: Early intervention in patients with first episode psychosis (FEP) can improve cognitive abilities, with both short- and long-term benefits. In this paper, we describe the implementation and review of cognitive remediation training (CRT) in an Asian FEP population. The outcomes of the training are also evaluated and discussed.Methods: This naturalistic paper describes in detail the real-life implementation and conduct of CRT in an early psychosis intervention service. One hundred and nine patients with FEP underwent a 24-session CRT programme, using Cogpack and Neuropsychological Educational Approach to Remediation. The program is evaluated with pre- and post-CRT assessment scores which included Montreal Cognitive Assessment and Brief Assessment of Cognition in Schizophrenia. The rates of improvement on these cognitive assessments were evaluated using paired t-tests, with statistical significance set at p ≤ 0.05.Results: Of the 109 patients who underwent CRT, a total of 92 (84.4%) completed all 24 sessions. Paired t-tests between pre- and post-CRT assessments scores revealed that participants significantly improved on majority of the measures, including verbal memory, digit sequencing, and symbol coding.Conclusion: As with other cognitive remediation programmes, CRT has shown to improve cognitive functioning in patients with FEP. The results support the use of CRT in an Asian context and may serve as guidance for the implementation of similar training programmes in other Asian early psychosis intervention services.

Suicide Prevention in First Episode Psychosis: The Development of a Randomised Controlled Trial of Cognitive Therapy for Acutely Suicidal Patients With Early Psychosis

2003 ◽  
Vol 37 (4) ◽  
pp. 414-420 ◽  
Author(s):  
P.J.R. Power ◽  
R.J. Bell ◽  
R. Mills ◽  
T. Herrman-Doig ◽  
M. Davern ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Early Intervention ◽  
Treatment Group ◽  
Young People ◽  
Controlled Trial ◽  
First Episode Psychosis ◽  
Early Psychosis ◽  
First Episode ◽  
Episode Psychosis ◽  
Randomised Controlled ◽  
Suicidal Patients

Background: Young people with early psychosis are at particularly high risk of suicide. However, there is evidence that early intervention can reduce this risk. Despite these advances, first episode psychosis patients attending these new services still remain at risk. To address this concern, a program called LifeSPAN was established within the Early Psychosis Prevention and Intervention Centre (EPPIC). The program developed and evaluated a number of suicide prevention strategies within EPPIC and included a cognitively oriented therapy (LifeSPAN therapy) for acutely suicidal patients with psychosis. We describe the development of these interventions in this paper. Method: Clinical audit and surveys provided an indication of the prevalence of suicidality among first episode psychosis patients attending EPPIC. Second, staff focus groups and surveys identified gaps in service provision for suicidal young people attending the service. Third, a suicide risk monitoring system was introduced to identify those at highest risk. Finally, patients so identified were referred to and offered LifeSPAN therapy whose effectiveness was evaluated in a randomised controlled trial. Results: Fifty-six suicidal patients with first episode psychosis were randomly assigned to standard clinical care or standard care plus LifeSPAN therapy. Forty-two patients completed the intervention. Clinical ratings and measures of suicidality and risk were assessed before, immediately after the intervention, and 6 months later. Benefits were noted in the treatment group on indirect measures of suicidality, e.g., hopelessness. The treatment group showed a greater average improvement (though not significant) on a measure of suicide ideation. Conclusions: Early intervention in psychosis for young people reduces the risk of suicide. Augmenting early intervention with a suicide preventative therapy may further reduce this risk.

Cognitive remediation combined with an early intervention service in first episode psychosis

2014 ◽  
Vol 130 (4) ◽  
pp. 300-310 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. Østergaard Christensen ◽  
L. Vesterager ◽  
G. Krarup ◽  
B. B. Olsen ◽  
M. Melau ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Early Intervention ◽  
Cognitive Remediation ◽  
First Episode Psychosis ◽  
First Episode ◽  
Early Intervention Service ◽  
Intervention Service ◽  
Episode Psychosis

scholarly journals Multifamily Group Psychoeducation and Cognitive Remediation for First-Episode Psychosis: A Randomized Controlled Trial

2011 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicholas JK Breitborde ◽  
Francisco A Moreno ◽  
Natalie Mai-Dixon ◽  
Rachele Peterson ◽  
Linda Durst ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Randomized Controlled Trial ◽  
Controlled Trial ◽  
Cognitive Remediation ◽  
First Episode Psychosis ◽  
First Episode ◽  
Randomized Controlled ◽  
Episode Psychosis ◽  
Group Psychoeducation

Relapse After First-Episode Psychosis: A 3-Year Follow-Up

2017 ◽  
Vol 41 (S1) ◽  
pp. S276-S276
Author(s):  
E. Pereira ◽  
M. Mota Oliveira ◽  
R. Guedes ◽  
M.J. Peixoto ◽  
I. Ferraz ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Psychotic Disorders ◽  
Statistical Significance ◽  
First Episode Psychosis ◽  
Response To Treatment ◽  
First Episode ◽  
Final Sample ◽  
Episode Psychosis ◽  
Competing Interest ◽  
Relapse Rates

IntroductionRelapse after first-episode psychosis (FEP) is a frequent problem, which can lead to patients’ poorer functioning and response to treatment. Its prevention is one of the most important and challenging targets in the treatment of psychotic disorders.ObjectivesTo characterize and evaluate relapse rates after FEP, during the course of 3 years, of a group of patients admitted at a psychiatry department.MethodsA retrospective observational study was conducted. Patients with a FEP between ages 18 to 40, admitted at the Clinic of Psychiatry and Mental Health at São João Hospital Centre between January 1, 2007 and September 30, 2013. Only patients with, at least, 3 years of follow-up at the clinic were included.ResultsFinal sample of 58 patients, 39 of which were male (mean age = 26.4 years). Forty patients were excluded by not completing the 3 years follow-up at our department. The cumulative relapse rates were 32.8% at 12 months, 53.4% at 24 months and 63.8% at 36 months. Patients with at least one relapse were younger (25.78 years vs. 27.52 years) and had shorter periods of first hospitalization (19.25 days vs. 23.52 days). These data did not reach statistical significance. Non-adherence to prescribed medication was described in 73.0% (n = 27) of patients at the time of relapse. Eight of them (21.6%) presented with cannabis use.ConclusionsAlthough no statistical significance was reached, our findings are consistent with other studies. A future study with a bigger sample would be important in achieving statistical significant results.Disclosure of interestThe authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.

scholarly journals Developing services for first-episode psychosis and the critical period

2005 ◽  
Vol 187 (S48) ◽  
pp. s91-s97 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jane Edwards ◽  
Meredith G. Harris ◽  
Swagata Bapat
Keyword(s):  
Evaluation Studies ◽  
Complex Interventions ◽  
Clinical Work ◽  
First Episode Psychosis ◽  
Early Psychosis ◽  
Current Evidence ◽  
First Episode ◽  
Episode Psychosis ◽  
Assessment And Treatment ◽  
Recent Evaluation

BackgroundProviding specialised services to individuals experiencing first-episode psychosis (FEP) is a relatively new endeavour.AimsTo overview developing services for newly diagnosed cases of FEP and the context in which they develop.MethodThis paper describes five model multi-element FEP programmes, outlines recent evaluation studies of FEP services, discusses current evidence gaps relating to the evaluation of complex interventions and specific interventions for FEP and illustrates attempts to examine aspects of clinical work practised at the Early Psychosis Prevention and Intervention Centre (EPPIC) in Melbourne, Australia.ResultsConsiderable progress has been made in terms of influencing practice in the assessment and treatment of early psychosis.ConclusionsThere is need for quality clinical and research efforts to inform and accelerate progress in this burgeoning field.

scholarly journals S132. SAMPLING BIAS IN STUDIES OF FIRST-EPISODE PSYCHOSIS – A FOLLOW-UP STUDY

2020 ◽  
Vol 46 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S85-S86
Author(s):  
Maija Walta ◽  
Heikki Laurikainen ◽  
Reetta-Liina Armio ◽  
Tiina From ◽  
Raimo K R Salokangas ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Clinical Care ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Sampling Bias ◽  
First Episode Psychosis ◽  
Dropping Out ◽  
First Episode ◽  
Episode Psychosis ◽  
Involuntary Care ◽  
One Year

Abstract Background Attrition rates and sampling bias in controlled clinical studies are a concern when evaluating the relevance of the results to a specific patient population in a real-life clinical / treatment setting. Dropout rates in studies on psychotic disorders are high and many eligibility criteria may lead to bias in study samples. We wanted to analyze how representative are the patient samples typically included in first-episode psychosis studies such as the Turku Early Psychosis (TEPS) study by using a platform of 3772 consecutive admissions to clinical psychiatric services of Turku Psychiatry. Methods TEPS study was started in 2011 as a part of a larger study on psychosis treatment processes in Turku Psychiatric services. Each patient, inpatient and outpatient, went through initial clinical screening by the treatment group which was followed by a structured evaluation if the screen for first-episode psychosis was positive. Between Oct 2011 and June 2016 there were 195 patients with first-episode psychosis (FEP) suitable to the TEPS study. Of them 102 were willing and 93 were not willing to participate or were not reached in a baseline structured evaluation. Using patient records, we compared if these two groups differed in terms of clinical variables, treatment or prognosis during a 1-year follow-up. Time of hospital stay, involuntary vs. voluntary admission, coercive measures during the hospital care, re-hospitalizations and drop-out from the clinical care during the follow-up were used as outcomes. Results Non-participating (NTP) group had higher rate of involuntary care than participating (TP) group (70 % vs 62 %) as well as higher rate of coercion during the treatment and higher rate of re-admissions during the follow-up than the TP group (36 % vs 22 % and 41 % vs 34 %, respectively) but these differences did not reach statistical significance. During the one-year follow-up NTP group had a significantly higher rate of dropping out from the clinical care than participating TP group (48 % vs 30 %, p=0.01). NTP group had also higher rate of dropping out of clinical treatment mainly because of patient non-adherence (33 % vs 16 %, p=0.03). Discussion Nearly half (47 %) of the intent-to-study FEP patients were not reached or declined to participate in our study. Non-participating patients had a slightly more severe illness and poorer treatment adherence during one-year follow-up. The clinical differences were not as marked as we expected. E.g. involuntary care, inpatient care and more coercion during the follow-up were not significantly different between NTP and TP groups. Nevertheless, the data suggest considerable differences between participating and non-participating patients with first-episode psychosis which should be taken in to account when evaluating the generalizability of the results for an unselected group of psychotic patients in ‘real-life’ clinical care.

scholarly journals T189. FREE THYROXIN CONCENTRATIONS MODERATE THE RESPONSE TO A COGNITIVE REMEDIATION THERAPY IN PEOPLE WITH EARLY PSYCHOSIS: PRELIMINARY FINDINGS

2020 ◽  
Vol 46 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S303-S304
Author(s):  
Francesc Estrada ◽  
Josep Maria Crosas ◽  
Maribel Ahuir ◽  
Sara Pérez ◽  
Wanda Zabala ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Repeated Measures ◽  
Cognitive Remediation ◽  
Early Psychosis ◽  
Cognitive Tasks ◽  
First Episode ◽  
Cognitive Changes ◽  
Cognitive Domains ◽  
Episode Psychosis ◽  
Changes Over Time ◽  
Over Time

Abstract Background Cognitive deficits are a common cause of functional disability in people with psychotic disorders. Cognitive remediation produces moderate improvements in cognitive performance in people with schizophrenia, although there is variability in the responses between patients. As previous longitudinal studies suggest that free thyroxin (FT4) levels influence attention cognitive tasks in patients with early psychosis, we aimed to conduct a pilot study to explore whether thyroid hormones might predict the response to cognitive remediation therapy (CRT) in patients with first-episode psychosis. Methods 27 patients (8 women; 19 men) with first-episode psychosis aged between 18 and 35 years old were randomized to receive a computerized CRT for three months (2 sessions/week) (N=14) or treatment as usual (TAU) (N=13). A full cognitive battery (CANTAB Schizophrenia) was administered at baseline and follow-up (3 months later, after the CRT/TAU period). Plasma levels of thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) and FT4 were measured. Data were analyzed on an intention-to-treat basis. Correlation analyses were conducted to explore the association between TSH and FT4 levels and cognitive changes over time. An ANOVA for repeated measures was used to compare longitudinal changes over time by the experimental group while adjusting for TSH and FT4 levels. Significance was defined as p<0.05. Results TSH concentrations were not associated with cognitive changes over time. FT4 concentrations were associated with cognitive worsening over time in cognitive tasks dealing with reaction time (simple median movement time [r= 0.60, p= 0.003]; simple median reaction time [r= 0.44, p= 0.039]), sustained attention (signal detection for the rapid visual processing task [r= -0.46, p= 0.028]) and verbal memory (immediate recognition [r= -0.54, p= 0.008]; delayed recognition [r= -0.48, p= 0.019]). The ANOVA for repeated measures did not show time by group effects although a time by FT4 significant effect was found for cognitive tasks dealing with these cognitive domains (p<0.05 for all). Discussion Although a direct effect of the CRT on cognitive improvement was not found, baseline FT4 concentrations appeared to predict the response to CRT in people with early psychosis. Significant associations were found for cognitive domains dealing with attention processes, which are in accordance with previous studies exploring the association between thyroid function and cognitive functioning in early psychotic patients. Our preliminary findings suggest that the determination of thyroid function status might be important for establishing which patients could show cognitive improvements over time. If these results are replicated in larger studies, the determination of thyroid status might help identify those individuals more prone for showing cognitive improvements, and allowing the implementation of a personalized medicine approach in the field of cognitive rehabilitation in psychosis.

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