Randomized controlled trial of a gluten-free diet in patients with schizophrenia positive for antigliadin antibodies (AGA IgG): a pilot feasibility study.

Background: Approximately one-third of people with schizophrenia have elevated levels of anti-gliadin antibodies of the immunoglobulin G type (AGA IgG) — a higher rate than seen in healthy controls. We performed the first double-blind clinical trial of gluten-free versus gluten-containing diets in a subset of patients with schizophrenia who were positive for AGA IgG.

Methods: In this pilot feasibility study, 16 participants with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder who had elevated AGA IgG (≥ 20 U) but were negative for celiac disease were admitted to an inpatient unit for a 5-week trial.

The MATRICS Consensus Cognitive Battery (MCCB): clinical and cognitive correlates.

The purpose of this study was to examine the cognitive and clinical correlates of the MATRICS Consensus Cognitive Battery (MCCB) which was originally developed to be an endpoint for cognitive enhancement clinical trials. In a sample of 117 people with schizophrenia and 77 healthy control participants we found the following: a) the MCCB was highly sensitive to the type and level of impairment typically observed in schizophrenia, b) the MCCB composite score was highly correlated with WASI Estimated Full Scale IQ score, c) that the MCCB domain scores were generally moderately-highly intercorrelated, d) that MCCB performance was minimally related to clinical symptom type and severity, and e) the MCCB is sensitive to employment status with better performance in employed vs. unemployed patients.

Anticipatory vs. consummatory pleasure: what is the nature of hedonic deficits in schizophrenia?

Recent research has distinguished between anticipatory and consummatory pleasure. In the current study, we examined the psychometric properties of the Temporal Experience of Pleasure Scale (TEPS) to determine whether reliability and validity findings reported in previous research replicate in an additional sample of schizophrenia patients. Participants included 86 individuals with schizophrenia and 59 demographically matched healthy controls.