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Cognitive alterations in patients with non‐affective psychotic disorder and their unaffected siblings and parents
Author(s) -
Meijer J.,
Simons C. J. P.,
Quee P. J.,
Verweij K.
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
acta psychiatrica scandinavica
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.849
H-Index - 146
eISSN - 1600-0447
pISSN - 0001-690X
DOI - 10.1111/j.1600-0447.2011.01777.x
Subject(s) - cognition , psychosis , psychology , working memory , social cognition , verbal memory , verbal reasoning , vigilance (psychology) , clinical psychology , schizophrenia (object oriented programming) , psychiatry , developmental psychology , cognitive psychology
Meijer J, Simons CJP, Quee PJ, Verweij K, GROUP Investigators. Cognitive alterations in patients with non‐affective psychotic disorder and their unaffected siblings and parents. Objective: The purpose of this study was to examine a range of cognitive measures as candidate phenotypic liability markers for psychosis in a uniquely large sample of patients with psychosis, their unaffected relatives and control subjects. Method: Patients with non‐affective psychosis ( n = 1093), their unaffected siblings ( n = 1044), parents ( n = 911), and controls ( n = 587) completed a comprehensive cognitive test battery. Cognitive functioning was compared using tests of verbal learning and memory, attention/vigilance, working memory, processing speed, reasoning and problem solving, acquired knowledge, and social cognition. Age‐ and gender‐adjusted z ‐scores were compared between groups using mixed‐model analyses of covariance. Clinically relevant impairment (−1 and −2 SD from control mean) was compared between subject groups. Results: Patients performed significantly worse than controls in all cognitive domains ( z ‐range −0.26 to −1.34). Siblings and parents showed alterations for immediate verbal learning, processing speed, reasoning and problem solving, acquired knowledge, and working memory ( z ‐range −0.22 to −0.98). Parents showed additional alterations for social cognition. Prevalence of clinically relevant impairment in relatives ranged from 50% (−1 SD criterion) to 10% (−2 SD criterion). Conclusion: Cognitive functioning is a candidate intermediate phenotype given significant small to large alterations in patients and intermediate alterations in first‐degree relatives.