Journal List > Korean J Schizophr Res > v.17(2) > 1057805

Cho, Ryu, Oh, Oh, Park, Yoon, and Hong: Correlation of Lifetime Symptom Dimensions with Cognitive Function and Other Clinical Characteristics in Schizophrenia Patients

Abstract

Objectives

Considering large diversity of clinical presentation of schizophrenia, it is important to identify valid clinical subtypes or dimensions that might have homogeneous biological underpinning. The current study aimed to explore lifetime symptom-based dimensional phenotypes in patients with chronic schizophrenia, and to investigate their correlation with cognitive functions and other clinical characteristics.

Methods

Lifetime-based symptoms and additional clinical variables were measured using the Diagnostic Interview for Genetic Studies and the Schedule for the Deficit Syndrome in 315 clinically stable patients with chronic schizophrenia. Through principal components factor analysis, eight dimensional phenotypes were obtained. Comprehensive neuropsychological tests were administered for 103 out of 315 patients, and domain scores were calculated for cognitive domains defined in the MATRICS consensus battery.

Results

: ‘Non-paranoid delusion factor' including delusions of grandiose or religious nature, showed significant negative correlation with processing speed, working memory, attention/vigilance, and general cognitive ability, and positive correlation with intraindividual variability. ‘Negative symptom factor' showed significant negative correlation only with general cognitive ability. Those two factors were also negatively correlated with function levels measured by Global Assessment Scale (GAS), and associated with poor treatment responses.

Conclusion

: Symptom-based dimensional phenotypes of schizophrenia measured on a lifetime basis showed discriminative correlation with cognitive function domains, global functioning level, and overall treatment responses, indicating their possibility as valid phenotype axes of schizophrenia having homogeneous biologic basis.

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Table 1.
Demographic and clinical chara jects (n=103) acteristics of the sub
Variables  
Sex (M: F), n 52: 51
Age (mean±S.D.), years 30.91±7.23
Education (mean±S.D.), years 14.17±2.17
Age of onset (mean±S.D.), years 22.92±5.96
Duration of illness (mean±S.D.), years 07.86±6.12
Number of admission (median), n 2
Subtype of schizophrenia at psychotic state, n (%)(n=101)
Paranoid 85 (84.2%)
Disorganized 05 (05.0%)
Catatonic 02 (02.0%)
Undifferentiated 09 (08.9%)
Table 2.
Correlation of lifetime symptom dimension scores with cognitive function
  Speed of processing g Working memory Verbal learning and memory Visual learning and memory Attention/ vigilance Reasoning and problem solving General cognitive ability Intraindividual variability
Prodromal impairment factor –0.19 –0.11 –0.05 –0.01 –0.04 –0.08 –0.12 –0.19
Negative symptom factor –0.13 –0.17 –0.09 –0.09 –0.17 –0.13 –0.20∗ –0.07
Auditory hallucination factor –0.15 –0.02 –0.01 –0.09 –0.08 –0.18 –0.09 –0.14
Schneiderian first-rank –0.04 –0.04 –0.05 –0.06 –0.08 –0.14 –0.05 –0.09
symptom factor                
Paranoid factor –0.01 –0.14 –0.04 –0.01 –0.06 –0.06 –0.06 –0.03
Non-paranoid delusion factor –0.26 –0.26 –0.12 –0.06 –0.20∗ –0.23 –0.30 –0.34
Somatic preoccupation factor –0.03 –0.18 –0.08 –0.14 –0.07 –0.16 –0.14 –0.01
Disorganization factor –0.13 –0.09 –0.16 –0.02 –0.02 –0.04 –0.02 –0.15

Pearson correlation analysis, age was entered as covariate (∗: p<0.05, †: p<0.01)

Table 3.
Correlation of lifetime symptom dimension scores with clinical characteristics
  GAS at worst point CGI-I Age of onset
Prodromal impairment factor –0.04 –0.09 –0.01
Negative symptom factor –0.29 –0.32 –0.05
Auditory hallucination factor –0.24 –0.17 –0.01
Schneiderian first-rank symptom factor –0.05 –0.08 –0.12∗
Paranoid factor –0.03 –0.10 –0.05
Non-paranoid delusion factor –0.22 –0.24 –0.03
Somatic preoccupation factor –0.06 –0.05 –0.17
Disorganization factor –0.09 –0.07 –0.06

Pearson correlation analysis (∗: p<0.05, †: p<0.01). GAS: Global Assessment Scale, CGI-I: Clinical Global Impression-Improvement scale, GAS at worst point: GAS score when patients were in their worst clinical state

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