Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2022 Feb 4:12:820801.
doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2021.820801. eCollection 2021.

Assessment and Treatment of Negative Symptoms in Schizophrenia-A Regional Perspective

Istvan Bitter  1 , Pavel Mohr  2   3 , Natalia Raspopova  4 , Agata Szulc  5 , Jerzy Samochowiec  6 , Ioana Valentina Micluia  7 , Oleg Skugarevsky  8 , Róbert Herold  9 , Alma Mihaljevic-Peles  10 , Nino Okribelashvili  11 , Jozef Dragašek  12 , Virginija Adomaitiene  13 , Elmars Rancans  14 , Jana Chihai  15 , Natalia Maruta  16 , Nadja P Marić  17 , Vihra Milanova  18 , Rok Tavčar  19 , Sergey Mosolov  20   21
Affiliations
Review

Assessment and Treatment of Negative Symptoms in Schizophrenia-A Regional Perspective

Istvan Bitter et al. Front Psychiatry. .

Abstract

Clinicians and researchers consider that there are a variety of symptoms that constitute negative symptoms in schizophrenia, and they may use different definitions for the same symptoms. These differences are also reflected in a variety of negative symptom rating scales. Both research and clinical work are negatively affected by the lack of consensus regarding the symptoms that constitute negative symptoms in schizophrenia. Leading research groups have investigated ways to reduce heterogeneity in the domain of negative symptoms in schizophrenia; however, little attention has been paid to regional differences in the concepts of negative symptoms in schizophrenia. The objective of this review was to collect and summarize information about the assessment and treatment of negative symptoms of schizophrenia in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE). Nineteen experts from 17 countries in CEE participated in this project. The participants collected information about their countries, including the following: (1) the most important publications about negative symptoms in schizophrenia (irrespective of the time of their publication); (2) the most frequently used negative symptom of schizophrenia in clinical practice; (3) definitions of frequently used negative symptoms; and (4) treatment of negative symptoms in schizophrenia. The participating experts/countries most frequently reported the following five negative symptoms: avolition, blunted affect, alogia, asociality, and anhedonia. Several experts also considered other symptoms as belonging to the negative symptom domain, such as a decrease in energy level and changes in personality. The importance of evaluating the long-term course and the relationship between negative symptoms and other symptom domains was also noted. No noticeable differences were reported in the treatment of negative symptoms compared to currently published guidelines and algorithms. The most frequently reported negative symptoms included those defined by the NIMH-MATRICS consensus statement on negative symptoms and recently endorsed in a guidance paper of the European Psychiatric Association. The main differences in the concepts, names, and definitions of primary negative symptoms, especially those related to personality changes, and to the evaluation of the long-term course and relationship between different symptom domains in CEE compared to the current English language literature deserve the attention of psychiatrists and other professionals in this field.

Keywords: Central and Eastern Europe; assessment; negative symptoms; personality; review; schizophrenia; treatment.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

In the past 5 years, IB received honoraria or consultation fees outside of this work from Angelini, Eli Lilly, Gedeon Richter, Hikma Pharmaceuticals, Janssen/Janssen Cilag, Lundbeck, Medichem Pharmaceuticals, Inc. by Unilab, Philippines, Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma Singapore, and Sun Pharma. He received royalties from the Oxford University Press. In the past 5 years, VA received honoraria or consultation fees from Janssen/Janssen Cilag. JS received honoraria as a member of the Speaker Bureau of Gedeon Richter. In the past 5 years, RT received speaker's honoraria from Angelini, Gedeon Richter, Janssen, Krka, Lek, Lundbeck, Mylan, Promed, Servier, Teva. In the past 5 years, AM-P received honoraria as speaker from Gedeon Richter, Janssen, Lundbeck, Pliva-Teva. PM has been a consultant and received honoraria and/or speaker fees from Angelini Pharma. Janssen-Cilag, Gedeon Richter, Lundbeck, and Viatris Mylan. In the past 5 years, NM received honoraria or consultation fees from Gedeon Richter, Maylan, Actavis-Teva and Pfizer. AS received honoraria or consultation fees from Gedeon Richter, Janssen Poland, and Angelini, Bausch Poland. In the past 5 years, RH received honoraria or consultation fees from Egis, Eli Lilly, Gedeon Richter, Janssen, Krka, Lundbeck, Mylan-Viatris, Servier, and Teva. In the past 5 years, ER received research grants from Gedeon Richter and Lundbeck, speaker honoraria, and is a member of advisory panels for Abbvie, Gedeon Richter, Grindex, Janssen Cilag, Lundbeck, Servier, and Zentiva. He has been the principal investigator in clinical trials for Lundbeck, Janssen Cilag, and Sunovion. In the past 5 years, SM received honoraria or consultation fees from Angelini, Gedeon Richter, Janssen, Lundbeck, Abbott, Grindex, and Servier. In the past 5 years, IM received honoraria as speaker from Angelini, Gedeon Richter, Janssen J&J, Lundbeck, Plantextract, and Terapia. NM has received in the past 5 years honoraria or consultation fees from Gedeon Richter, Sanofi, Acino, OlainFarm, Ever-pharma, Dileo Farma. NO, as a speaker, has received honoraria from Abbott, Abdi Ibrahim, Acino, Angelini, Egis, Gedeon Richter, Grindex, Novartis, Sanofi Aventis, Servier in the past 5 years. JD has received in the past 5 years honoraria or consultation fees from Angelini, Eli Lilly, Gedeon Richter, Janssen, Krka, Lundbeck, Sandoz. VM has received in the past 5 years honoraria or consultation fees from Angelini, Gedeon Richter, Janssen/Janssen Cilag, Medochemie, Lundbeck. The remaining authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest. The handling editor declared a past co-authorship with one of the authors IB.

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Bitter I. Definitions and measurement of negative symptoms in schizophrenia. In: Bitter I, editor. Managing Negative Symptoms of Schizophrenia. Oxford: Oxford University Press; (2020). p. 1–18. 10.1093/med/9780198840121.003.0001 - DOI
    1. Galderisi S, Mucci A, Dollfus S, Nordentoft M, Falkai P, Kaiser S, et al. . EPA guidance on assessment of negative symptoms in schizophrenia. Eur Psychiatry. (2021) 64:e23. 10.1192/j.eurpsy.2021.11 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Galderisi S, Kaiser S, Bitter I, Nordentoft M, Mucci A, Sabé M, et al. . EPA guidance on treatment of negative symptoms in schizophrenia. Eur Psychiatry. (2021) 64:e21. 10.1192/j.eurpsy.2021.13 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Kirkpatrick B, Fenton WS, Carpenter WT, Marder SR. The NIMH-MATRICS consensus statement on negative symptoms. Schizophr Bull. (2006) 32:214–9. 10.1093/schbul/sbj053 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Su CC, Chia-Cheng Lai E, Kao Yang YH, Man KKC, Kubota K, Stang P, et al. . Incidence, prevalence and prescription patterns of antipsychotic medications use in Asia and US: a cross-nation comparison with common data model. J Psychiatr Res. (2020) 131:77–84. 10.1016/j.jpsychires.2020.08.025 - DOI - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources