The effect of delusion and hallucination types on treatment response in schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder

Abstract

Objective: While there are numerous studies investigating what kind of variables, including socio-demographic and cultural ones, affect the delusion types, not many studies can be found that investigate the impact of delusion types on treatment response. Our study aimed at researching the effect of delusion and hallucination types on treatment response in inpatients admitted with a diagnosis of schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder. Method: The patient group included 116 consecutive inpatients diagnosed with schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder according to DSM-IV-TR in a clinical interview. Delusions types were determined using the classification system developed by Gross and colleagues. The hallucinations were recorded as auditory, visual and auditory-visual. Response to treatment was assessed according to the difference in the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) scores at admission and discharge and the duration of hospitalization. Results: Studying the effect of delusion types on response to treatment, it has been found that for patients with religious and grandiose delusions, statistically the duration of hospitalization is significantly longer than for other patients. On the other hand, in patients with a delusion of being bewitched, the difference between their PANSS scores at admission and discharge was lower. The types of hallucination did not affect the difference in PANSS scores nor the duration of treatment. However, in case of visual hallucinations, PANSS scores for psychotic exacerbation were higher. Conclusion: This study shows the association of negative treatment response with delusions of grandiosity and being bewitched and religious delusions. It can be said that delusion types in the schizophrenia spectrum may affect the duration of hospitalization and treatment response.