Short Neuropsychological Assessment in Schizophrenic Patients

Abstract

Patients with schizophrenia show deficits in executive functions, resembling patterns also found in frontal lesions. The advent of these findings shows the need for appropriate short neuropsychological screening tests in order to assess cognitive function in schizophrenia. Method: We gathered data from a patient group with schizophrenia, and from a control group. We administered 3 short, fast screening tests: MOCA (Montreal Cognitive Assessment), MMSE (Mini Mental State Exam) and FAB (Frontal Assessment Battery). Results: All 3 test were found to be highly correlated with each other, with MOCA being a predictor factor for FAB scores. In measuring the 3 tests’ sensitivity to schizophrenia associated cognitive impairments, we found that FAB was the most sensitive among the three. Conclusions: Our goal was to examine the utility of the FAB test when screening for cognitive deficits in Greek patients with schizophrenia. We found that FAB can be a valuable tool in neuropsychological assessment, but given the varied nature of patients with schizophrenia cognitive profile, it should be accompanied with an extensive battery of tests.