What is it about?
Schizophrenia is associated with a degree of IQ-decline and impaired executive and mnemonic functions. It is considered that some elderly schizophrenic patients show a more severe, dementia-like profile, but the precise pattern of cognitive deficits in this age group is little studied. We performed detailed neuropsychological evaluations, using a range of memory and executive tests, on 27 elderly patients with DSM-IV schizophrenia and onset before 45 years. 12 scored in the dementia range on the CAMCOG (< 80). This latter group was compared with a group of 15 mildly impaired patients meeting the NINCDS-ADRDA criteria for probable Alzheimer's disease, matched on CAMCOG scores. Both groups showed impaired executive function and there was a tendency towards more severe impairment in the demented schizophrenia patients. With respect to memory, the Alzheimer's patients showed significantly worse performance on verbal tests compared to the demented schizophrenia patients, whereas visuo-spatial memory was more markedly impaired in the schizophrenia than the Alzheimer’s group.
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Why is it important?
Our results indicate that dementia in schizophrenia had a different cognitive profile from that seen in Alzheimer's disease. This may reflect a fundamental difference in the underlying neural mechanisms, with frontal lobe dysfunction possibly playing a more significant role in schizophrenia.
Perspectives
The memory deficits in the demented schizophrenics were independent of delay, which suggests that they may be secondary to compromised attentional processing.
Assoc Prof Andrew E P Mitchell
University of Chester
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Specific neuropsychological profile of dementia in schizophrenia?, Schizophrenia Research, January 2000, Elsevier,
DOI: 10.1016/s0920-9964(00)90980-0.
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