The Schizoaffective Continuum: Euclid's Second Axiom

Abstract

AbstractThe schizoaffective continuum includes six groups: nonpsychotic bipolars and unipolars, mood-congruent psychotic bipolars and unipolars, and mood-incongruent psychotic bipolars and unipolars. We tested the hypothesis that if these acute mood-incongruent psychotic patients who meet criteria for schizoaffective disorder (mood-incongruent psychotic symptoms) were part of the affective segment of the continuum, they would be likely to show bipolar-unipolar differences similar to those seen in the comparisons between the non-psychotic and the mood-congruent psychotic groups. This was found. In all groups, the unipolars contain more females. The bipolars are more likely than unipolars in all of the comparisons to show an acute onset and early onset, previous multiple hospitalizations, and a lower index age. The strongest differences are in the areas of acute onset and multiple hospitalizations, with the bipolars more likely to show this than the unipolars, whether or not they are nonpsychotic, have mood...