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Clinical Trial
. 2002 May;27(3):188-92.

Cognitive functioning in first-episode schizophrenia

Jean Addington  1 , Donald Addington
Affiliations
Clinical Trial

Cognitive functioning in first-episode schizophrenia

Jean Addington et al. J Psychiatry Neurosci. 2002 May.

Abstract
in English, French

Objective: To compare the cognitive functioning of a sample of patients experiencing their first episode of schizophrenia with that of patients with an established schizophrenia illness.

Design: Cross-sectional and longitudinal study.

Setting: The Calgary Early Psychosis Treatment and Prevention Program and an outpatient clinic in a department of psychiatry at a university-affiliated hospital.

Participants: One hundred and eleven patients who were experiencing their first episode of schizophrenia and 76 outpatients with an established schizophrenia illness.

Measures: The Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale for schizophrenia was administered to all subjects to determine levels of positive and negative symptoms. Executive functioning, information processing, visual memory, and immediate and delayed verbal memory were assessed.

Results: There were limited differences between the 2 groups in terms of cognitive functioning. Although the first-episode patients demonstrated generally superior scores, their performance was impaired.

Conclusions: These results support the findings of previous studies suggesting that first-episode patients demonstrate cognitive impairments similar to those of patients with an established schizophrenia illness.

Objectif: Comparer le fonctionnement cognitif d'un échantillon de patients vivant leur premier épisode de schizophrénie à celui de patients dont la schizophrénie est établie.

Conception: Étude transversale et longitudinale.

Contexte: Le Programme de traitement rapide et de prévention de la psychose de Calgary et une clinique externe d'un service de psychiatrie d'un hôpital affilié à une université.

Participants: Cent onze patients vivant leur premier épisode de schizophrénie et 76 patients en service externe dont la schizophrénie est établie.

Mesures: On a soumis tous les sujets à l'échelle d'appréciation des symptômes positifs et négatifs pour la schizophrénie afin de déterminer le niveau des symptômes positifs et négatifs. On a évalué la fonction d'exécution, le traitement de l'information, la mémoire visuelle et la mémoire verbale immédiate et différée.

Résultats: On a constaté des différences limitées entre les deux groupes sur les plans du fonctionnement cognitif. Même si les patients vivant leur premier épisode ont obtenu des résultats en général supérieurs, ils avaient un déficit au niveau du rendement.

Conclusions: Ces résultats appuient les constatations d'études antérieures qui indiquent que les patients vivant leur premier épisode montrent des déficits de la cognition semblables à ceux des patients dont la schizophrénie est établie.

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References

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