Cognitive function in schizophrenia. Deficits, functional consequences, and future treatment.

This article has discussed the relationship between cognitive deficits and functional outcome in schizophrenia. This relationship was noted first by Kraepelin and Bleuler at the beginning of the twentieth century. With the introduction of conventional neuroleptics, the focus shifted toward the treatment of positive symptoms.

Effects of 10 mg and 15 mg oral procyclidine on critical flicker fusion threshold and cardiac functioning in healthy human subjects.

The critical flicker fusion threshold (CFFT) is thought to index alertness and cortical arousal. Sedative drugs reduce CFFT while psychostimulants increase it. Procyclidine is an anticholinergic that is used to control the extrapyramidal side-effects of antipsychotics in schizophrenia.

Temporal lobe abnormalities in first-episode psychosis.

Objective: The nature and time course of temporal lobe abnormalities in psychotic illness remain controversial. Confounds include disease chronicity, gender, and handedness. The present study investigated temporal substructures in right-handed male patients experiencing their first episode of psychotic illness.

Quetiapine--efficacy in different domains.

Conventional treatment paradigms for schizophrenia have typically focused on reducing positive symptomatology; however, it is increasingly apparent that negative and cognitive symptoms are also important treatment targets. Cognitive function, in particular, is known to affect multiple outcome domains, including performance of basic daily activities, and social and occupational functioning. While traditional antipsychotics have little, or even a detrimental, effect on neurocognitive impairment in patients with schizophrenia, available data suggest that cognitive function may be improved during treatment with atypical antipsychotics.

Complementary therapies education in midwifery.

Midwives and their clients are becoming increasingly interested in the use of complementary and alternative therapies which offer a variety of different strategies for dealing with the effects of pregnancy and childbirth. This paper explores the current provision of complementary therapy education for midwives, and suggests the establishment of a new clinical specialism of complementary therapies in midwifery.

Undisclosed self-medication--a clinical pitfall.

Over-the-counter medication may produce side-effects or precipitate hospital admission. Our patient's self-medication, initially not admitted, led to much mental and physical morbidity.