A comparative study of cognitive functions in individuals at ultra high-risk for psychosis

Abstract

Objective To investigate the differences of cognitive functions among ultra high-risk individuals(UHR), first-episode schizophrenia patients and healthy controls. Methods Twenty four participants meeting clinical inclusion criteria for initial prodromal states (IPS) selected from the first degree relatives of schizophrenia, 23 first onset schizophrenia patients from the same family with UHR as well as 30 healthy controls were assessed with a comprehensive neuropsychological test battery including Trail Making Test (TMT), Stroop color word test and the Continuous Performance Test (CPT) to test the speed of information processing and sustained attention ability. Results ①The time of the Trail Making Test in UHR((45.12±14.87)s) was shorter than first-episode schizophrenia patients((60.43±19.30)s), but longer than healthy controls((27.13±7.74)s). The whole score of the Stroop color word test in UHR(28.46±7.87) was higher than first-episode schizophrenia patients(18.78±6.86), and lower than healthy controls(43.40±9.64). The score of the Continuous Performance Test in UHR(1.86±1.05) was significanly higher than first-episode schizophrenia patients(1.17±0.67), but lower than healthy controls(2.63±0.67), and all these differences were significant(P<0.01). ②Taking age, years of education, occupation status, marital status and the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) scores as the covariance, the analysis of covariance showed TMT and Stroop color word test were still statistically significant. Conclusion There are cognitive function changes in individuals at ultra high-risk for psychosis, lying between first-episode schizophrenia cases and healthy controls. Key words: Ultra high-risk for psychosis; Cognitive functions; First-episode schizophrenia