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. 2024 Aug 16;14(8):819.
doi: 10.3390/brainsci14080819.

The Relationship between Clinical and Psychophysical Assessments of Visual Perceptual Disturbances in Individuals at Clinical High Risk for Psychosis: A Preliminary Study

Chloe Ifrah  1   2 , Shaynna N Herrera  2 , Steven M Silverstein  3 , Cheryl M Corcoran  2 , James Gordon  4 , Pamela D Butler  5   6 , Vance Zemon  1
Affiliations

The Relationship between Clinical and Psychophysical Assessments of Visual Perceptual Disturbances in Individuals at Clinical High Risk for Psychosis: A Preliminary Study

Chloe Ifrah et al. Brain Sci. .

Abstract

This study investigated relations between a measure of early-stage visual function and self-reported visual anomalies in individuals at clinical high risk for psychosis (CHR-P). Eleven individuals at CHR identified via the Structured Interview for Psychosis-Risk Syndromes (SIPS) were recruited from a CHR-P research program in NYC. The sample was ~36% female, ranging from 16 to 33 years old (M = 23.90, SD = 6.14). Participants completed a contrast sensitivity task on an iPad with five spatial frequencies (0.41-13 cycles/degree) and completed the self-report Audio-Visual Abnormalities Questionnaire. Higher contrast sensitivity (better performance) to low spatial frequencies was associated with higher perceptual (r = 0.616, p = 0.044) and visual disturbances (r = 0.667, p = 0.025); lower contrast sensitivity to a middle spatial frequency was also associated with higher perceptual (r = -0.604, p = 0.049) and visual disturbances (r = -0.606, p = 0.048). This relation between the questionnaire and contrast sensitivity to low spatial frequency may be indicative of a reduction in lateral inhibition and "flooding" of environmental stimuli. The association with middle spatial frequencies, which play a critical role in face processing, may result in a range of perceptual abnormalities. These findings demonstrate that self-reported perceptual anomalies occur in these individuals and are linked to performance on a measure of early visual processing.

Keywords: clinical high risk for psychosis; contrast sensitivity; early-stage visual processing; perceptual disturbances; schizophrenia.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Left Side: LogCS/500 ms, 0.41 cyc/deg by AVAQ total score and AVAQ Visual Processing (VP) score. Right Side: LogCS/500 ms, 6.5 cyc/deg by AVAQ total score and AVAQ Visual Processing (VP) score. Blue lines are AVAQ total score and orange lines are AVAQ Visual Processing (VP) score.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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