Does Alcohol Influence Cognitive Functions in Patients with Schizophrenia?

Abstract

Objectives. To establish the characteristics of the influence of alcoholization on cognitive functions in patients with schizophrenia, Materials and methods. A total of 100 patients with paranoid schizophrenia were studied. A main group (MG) was identified with concomitant diagnosis of alcohol dependence (n = 50), along with a control group (n = 50). The characteristics of memory, attention, and thought were assessed, and the groups were compared in terms of the presence of concomitant addictive pathology. Results. Attention and short-term memory were at the borderline level and no statistically significant differences were seen between the groups studied. In the Benton test, the study group showed a predominance of errors of the schizophrenic type, while the control group was dominated by “organic” errors. A statistically significant dominance of mild decreases in thought were seen in the MG. Conclusions. Concomitant alcohol dependence was not a defining factor in cognitive impairments in patients with schizophrenia, though it introduced a distinct organic stigma to the structure of the patients’ cognitive profile. “Organic” impairments to thought structure in patients with concomitant alcohol dependence were seen. The best measures of attention were seen in patients suffering from shift-like schizophrenia who were healthy in addiction terms. This suggests that the influence of the alcohol factor has different significance in the continuous and episodic/progressive types of schizophrenia.