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Early prodromal symptoms and diagnoses before first psychotic episode in 219 inpatients with schizophrenia
Author(s) -
SHIOIRI TOSHIKI,
SHINADA KEITA,
KUWABARA HIDEKI,
SOMEYA TOSHIYUKI
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
psychiatry and clinical neurosciences
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.609
H-Index - 74
eISSN - 1440-1819
pISSN - 1323-1316
DOI - 10.1111/j.1440-1819.2007.01685.x
Subject(s) - schizophrenia (object oriented programming) , anxiety , psychiatry , psychology , mood , age of onset , anxiety disorder , psychosis , medicine , disease
The authors examined the diagnosis before the onset of schizophrenia and retrospectively evaluated the presence/absence of early prodromal symptoms (EPS) and their types (such as depressive symptoms, anxiety symptoms, and obsessive‐compulsive [OC] symptoms) and the period from the onset of these symptoms to that of schizophrenia in 219 inpatients with schizophrenia diagnosed according to the DSM‐IV(‐TR). A diagnosis was made before the onset of schizophrenia in 53 patients (24.2%). The diagnoses were mood disorder in 39 patients, anxiety disorder in seven, obsessive‐compulsive disorder (OCD) in three, adjustment disorder in two, and eating disorder in two. EPS were present in 65 (29.7%) of all patients, slightly more frequent in female patients (male : female = 1:1.41). In the group with EPS, depressive symptoms (61.5%) were most frequently observed, followed by anxiety symptoms (23.1%) and OC symptoms (9.2%). The age at onset for each type of symptom was significantly lower for OC symptoms (14.5 ± 2.4 years) than for the other symptoms (approx. 20 years). The mean period from the onset of each symptom to that of schizophrenia was the shortest for depressive symptoms (2.7 ± 3.1 years) and the longest (>4 years) for OC symptoms. These results as well as previous studies in Western countries showed that more non‐specific and general symptoms are frequently present for some years before the onset of schizophrenia. With consideration of this point, efforts toward early detection of schizophrenia are important.