Historical, psychopathological, neurological, and neuropsychological aspects of deficit schizophrenia: a multicenter study.

Objective: This multicenter study aimed to verify whether the historical and psychopathological characteristics of a large group of patients with deficit schizophrenia were consistent with those reported in previous studies. The authors also tested the hypothesis that neurological and neuropsychological indices sensitive to frontoparietal dysfunction, but not those sensitive to temporal lobe dysfunction, are more impaired in patients with deficit schizophrenia than in those with non-deficit schizophrenia.

Method: For each patient with deficit schizophrenia enrolled in the study, a matched subject with non-deficit schizophrenia was recruited.

Brain electrical microstates in subjects with panic disorder.

Brain electrical microstates represent spatial configurations of scalp recorded brain electrical activity and are considered to be the basic elements of stepwise processing of information in the brain. In the present study, the hypothesis of a temporo-limbic dysfunction in panic disorder (PD) was tested by investigating the topographic descriptors of brain microstates, in particular the one corresponding to the Late Positive Complex (LPC), an event-related potential (ERP) component with generators in these regions. ERPs were recorded in PD patients and matched healthy subjects during a target detection task, in a central (CC) and a lateral condition (LC).

Qualitative MRI findings in patients with schizophrenia: a controlled study.

A variety of brain structural abnormalities, which can be identified only by qualitative methods, have been shown to correlate with clinical presentation and course of schizophrenia. In the present study, MRI scans of 122 patients with DSM-IV schizophrenia and 81 non-psychiatric controls were evaluated. Among males, the frequency of CNS developmental abnormalities (CDAs) was higher in patients than in controls.

'Simple schizophrenia': a controlled MRI and clinical/neuropsychological study.

The present study explored the frequency of neuromorphological, neurological and neuropsychological abnormalities in 13 patients with an ICD-8/9 diagnosis of simple schizophrenia, also fulfilling DSM-IV criteria for 'simple deteriorative disorder', and in 13 matched patients with an ICD-8/9 diagnosis of a subtype of schizophrenia other than simple schizophrenia, fulfilling DSM-IV criteria for schizophrenia. The frequency of neuromorphological abnormalities in the two patient groups was also compared with that observed in 13 neurological control subjects. Both patients with simple schizophrenia and those with other schizophrenia subtypes showed a higher frequency of brain developmental abnormalities and greater ventricular and subarachnoid space volumes than controls.

Hemispheric asymmetry and psychopathological dimensions in drug-free patients with schizophrenia.

Several neuropsychological models of schizophrenia have regarded the syndrome as a disorder of the left hemisphere. However, discrepant experimental findings have been reported. It has been proposed that the different psychopathological dimensions of the syndrome are associated with distinct patterns of hemispheric imbalance.

Multilead quantitative EEG profile of clozapine in resting and vigilance-controlled conditions.

Clozapine is the prototype of a new class of drugs, referred to as 'atypical antipsychotics'. As a matter of fact, the antipsychotic activity of the drug was not predicted by the first studies with quantitative electroencephalography (QEEG), which actually reported an antidepressant pattern. All previous QEEG studies carried out in healthy subjects used a maximum of four leads, exploring only the posterior quadrants of the scalp.

Influence of moclobemide on cognitive functions of nine depressed patients: pilot trial with neurophysiological and neuropsychological indices.

Quantitative electroencephalogram (QEEG) changes induced by the acute administration of moclobemide (200 mg) in patients with major depression include a transient increase in theta-activity, a slight augmentation of alpha-activity and a sustained increase in beta-activity. This QEEG profile distinguishes moclobemide from sedative antidepressants. A 42-day treatment with 400 mg/day of the drug produces a significant decrease in the late positive-complex peak latency of the event-related potentials, suggesting a positive effect on attention and cognitive functions.

Neuropsychological slowness in obsessive-compulsive patients. Is it confined to tests involving the fronto-subcortical systems?

Background: Although it is acknowledged that obsessive-compulsive (OC) patients may be slower than healthy controls in performing neuropsychological tests, speed has usually been treated as a confounding variable. It is possible, however, that the slower performance of OC patients is itself the result of a dysfunction of specific neural circuits (in particular of fronto-subcortical systems).

Method: A neuropsychological battery including tests sensitive to fronto- and temporo-subcortical dysfunction was administered to a group of OC patients and a group of healthy controls.

QEEG alpha 1 changes after a single dose of high-potency neuroleptics as a predictor of short-term response to treatment in schizophrenic patients.

Baseline quantitative electroencephalographic (QEEG) characteristics and their changes after a single test dose of either haloperidol or clopenthixol were investigated in a group of 29 schizophrenics as possible predictors of short-term response to those drugs. On baseline QEEG assessment, responders (R) to subsequent treatment showed fewer slow and more fast activities than nonresponders (NR). A large overlap between R and NR with respect to these measures was observed, however, revealing their practical inadequacy to predict short-term response in individual patients.

Evaluation of two new neuropsychological tests designed to minimize cultural bias in the assessment of HIV-1 seropositive persons: a WHO study.

In the course of the preparatory work for the WHO cross-cultural study on the neuropsychiatric aspects of HIV-I infection, two new neuropsychological tests (the WHO/UCLA Auditory Verbal Learning Test and the Color Trails 1 & 2) were developed. The evaluation of these tests was performed at four sites, two in developed and two in developing countries. The data obtained suggest that the tests are more culture fair than others currently used to assess the same functional domains, that they are sensitive to HIV-1-associated cognitive impairment, and that this sensitivity "holds" across different cultures.

Computerized EEG topography findings in schizophrenic patients before and after haloperidol treatment.

An increase of delta and fast beta activity in schizophrenic patients when compared with normal controls has been consistently reported. Topography of these abnormalities, in particular a possible frontal localization of delta, and their relationship to drug treatment and clinical status are still debated. In order to assess these issues, a multilead CEEG investigation was carried out in a group of 20 DSM-III-R schizophrenics, both before and after haloperidol treatment.

CEEG mapping in drug-free schizophrenics. Differences from healthy subjects and changes induced by haloperidol treatment.

A topographic CEEG investigation was carried out in 20 drug-free, DSM-IIIR diagnosed schizophrenics and in a group of matched healthy controls. The effects of acute and chronic haloperidol treatment were then assessed in the patient group. On the baseline recording, schizophrenics showed a widespread increase in delta, theta 1 and beta 3 amplitude.

Lateralization patterns of event-related potential and performance indices in schizophrenia: relationship to clinical state and neuroleptic treatment.

In a previous study we assessed lateralization patterns of verbal stimuli processing, by means of behavioural and neurophysiological measures, in a sample of drug-free schizophrenics and one of normal controls. The main findings obtained were the following: (1) a right visual field (RVF) advantage on reaction time (RT) and late positive complex (LPC) peak of the ERPs in normal subjects but not in schizophrenics; (2) a left visual field (LVF) significant advantage on P360 and slow wave (SW) amplitude in schizophrenics but not in controls; (3) a significantly longer RT and smaller P360 and SW for RVF stimuli in schizophrenics as compared to normals; (4) a significant contralateral effect of visual field on N180 at both the left and the right parietal site in normal controls and only at the right parietal site in schizophrenics. As a further step of this investigation we re-tested 9 schizophrenics after 28 days of haloperidol treatment.

C-EEG brain mapping in DSM-III schizophrenics after acute and chronic haloperidol treatment.

A multi-lead C-EEG investigation was carried out, in order to evaluate changes induced by acute and chronic treatment with haloperidol in DSM-III-R schizophrenics. After the acute treatment the main C-EEG changes were (1) a significant decrease of delta relative power (RP) over all the explored leads and of theta 1 over the occipital leads; (2) an increase in alpha 2 and beta 2 RP, as well as a decrease of beta 3 RP confined to the anterior temporal leads (T3, T4). During chronic treatment, C-EEG changes observed were (1) a significant decrease of delta RP and an increase of theta 1 RP; (2) an increase of alpha 1 and alpha 2 RP; (3) a significant decrease of beta 1, beta 2 and beta 3.

Depression and cerebral stroke.

Behavioral and psychological changes following cerebrovascular pathology have long been known. Depression, often severe and long-lasting, is a common and often unrecognized component of stroke. Although many of the clinical characteristics of poststroke depression have been reported in the literature for years, systematic studies of the frequency, course, relationship to lesion location, and response to treatment have only recently been undertaken.

Dementia in schizophrenia. Magnetic resonance and clinical correlates.

Thirty-nine patients with a chronic schizophrenic disorder and 29 healthy control subjects were examined by means of multiplanar magnetic resonance imaging. Schizophrenics as a group showed increased ventricular brain ratio and reduced corpus callosum area. When patients were grouped according to their performance on the Luria-Nebraska Neuropsychological Battery (LNNB), a distinct subgroup of six patients emerged.

Factors associated with increased noradrenaline levels in schizophrenic patients.

1. CSF NA levels were determined in a sample of DSM III-diagnosed schizophrenics and in a non-psychiatric control group. Schizophrenics with NA levels above and below the median were compared with respect to several clinical, historical, neuropsychological and biological variables.

Lateralization patterns of verbal stimuli processing assessed by reaction time and event-related potentials in schizophrenic patients.

Event-related potentials (ERPs), reaction time (RT), number of errors and number of omissions were recorded by using a visual target detection paradigm in which consonant pairs were presented in a central and in a lateral condition. Fourteen DSM III drug-free schizophrenics and 19 healthy subjects took part in the study. All of them were male and right-handed.

Clinical, biological, and neuropsychological features associated with lateral ventricular enlargement in DSM-III schizophrenic disorder.

Clinical, historical, neuropsychological, and biological correlates of lateral ventricular enlargement on computed tomography (CT scan) were explored in a sample of DSM-III schizophrenics. Patients with enlarged ventricles, as compared with those whose ventricles were normal, presented a longer duration of illness and mean duration of hospitalization, and higher scores on the subscales alogia, affective flattening, and attentional impairment of the Scale for the Assessment of Negative Symptoms (SANS), on the scales self-care, participation in household activities, work performance, and behavior in crises and emergencies of the Disability Assessment Schedule, on the scales rhythm, writing, reading, arithmetic, and left hemisphere of the Luria-Nebraska Neuropsychological Battery, and on the subtests digit span, digit symbol and block design of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale. Furthermore, on the computerized electroencephalogram, beta relative activity was significantly higher in patients with normal ventricles on the right frontal, left frontal, and right central leads.

Conditional associative learning in drug-free schizophrenic patients.

The performance on spatial and nonspatial associative learning tasks was tested in a sample of male drug-free DSM III-diagnosed schizophrenic patients and in a closely matched normal control group. Schizophrenics showed a worse performance on both versions of the task, but especially on the nonspatial one. A significant correlation was observed between some indices of the nonspatial task and the scores on two subscales (affective flattening and anhedonia) of the scale for the assessment of negative symptoms by Andreasen.

Factors associated with decreased platelet MAO activity in chronic schizophrenics.

Platelet MAO activity was determined in a sample of chronic schizophrenics, including drug-free and neuroleptic-treated patients, and in a normal control group. Patients with MAO values below and above the median were compared with respect to several clinical, historical, neuroradiological and neuropsychological variables. The enzyme activity was significantly decreased in the whole patient group and in the subgroup of neuroleptic-treated patients, but not in the subgroup of drug-free patients.