Impairment In Schizophrenic Patients Research Articles

Association Between Metabolic Risk Factors and Cognitive Impairment in Schizophrenia Based on Sex.

Sex differences have been observed in many aspects of schizophrenia, including cognitive deficits. Despite extensive research into the relationship between metabolic factors and cognitive deficits in schizophrenia, few studies have explored the potential sex difference in their association. We recruited 358 schizophrenia patients and 231 healthy controls. The participants underwent measurements of body mass index (BMI), waist circumference, blood pressure, triglycerides, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and fasting blood glucose. Metabolic risk factors included abdominal obesity, hypertension, hyperglycemia, and dyslipidemia. A collection of these metabolic risk factors has been defined as metabolic syndrome. These diagnoses were based on the criteria of the National Cholesterol Education Program's Adult Treatment Panel III. Cognitive performance was measured using the Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status (RBANS). A descriptive analysis, difference analysis, and linear regression model were used to identify the metabolic risk factors for cognitive function in schizophrenia. Our findings revealed sex differences in the rate of abdominal obesity and hypertension in schizophrenic patients. Additionally, we observed sex differences in the association between metabolic risk factors and cognitive impairment in schizophrenia. Specifically, hyperglycemia was associated with the immediate memory index score of RBANS in male patients, while dyslipidemia was associated with language, attention, delayed memory index scores, and RBANS total score in female patients. Our results suggest that sex should be considered when evaluating the impact of metabolic disorders on the cognitive function of schizophrenic patients. Moreover, our study identifies hyperglycemia and dyslipidemia as potential targets for precise treatment by sex stratification, which could benefit the improvement of cognitive impairment in schizophrenic patients.

Association between lipid metabolism and cognitive function in patients with schizophrenia.

The association between blood lipids and cognitive function in schizophrenia is still controversial. Thus, the present study aimed to verify the association between various lipid parameters and cognitive impairment in schizophrenic patients and potential lipid pathways. A total of 447 adult inpatients with schizophrenia were divided into cognitive normal and cognitive impairment groups based on the Mini-Mental State Examination with a cut-off of 26. The blood lipid parameters were defined as abnormal levels based on the guideline. The liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry method was used to preliminarily explore the potential lipid metabolism pathway associated with cognitive impairment. There were 368 (82.3%) patients who had cognitive impairment. Herein, apolipoprotein B was positively associated with cognitive function in overall patients and age (≥45 and <45 years) and sex subgroups. After excluding patients with hypertension and diabetes, ApoB was still significantly associated with cognitive function in all the patients. The associations between other lipid parameters, including non-high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol and triglyceride, and cognitive impairment were heterogeneous in age and sex subgroups. In contrast, total cholesterol and apolipoprotein A1 were not significantly associated with cognitive impairment. Metabolomics analysis showed that metabolic pathway mainly involved sphingolipid metabolism. Meanwhile, sphinganine and 3-dehydrosphinganine were positively correlated with lipid parameters and decreased in patients with cognitive impairment as compared to those with normal cognition. The present study suggests a positive association between lipids and cognitive function in schizophrenic patients and needs to be further verified by a prospective study.

Evaluation of Cognitive Functions in Schizophrenic Patients with the Montreal Cognitive Assessment Scale and Mini-Mental State Examination

Schizophrenia is a complex neurodevelopmental disorder. Cognitive deficit is the central feature of the neurodevelopmental disorders. Cognitive impairment is related to social, functional, and clinical symptoms. The aim of this study was to investigate the clinical usability of the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) as a screening instrument for cognitive impairment in schizophrenic patients alone, and in correlation with the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE). This clinical study included 31 patients diagnosed with schizophrenia. Patients were selected from Psychiatry Clinic. For the assessment of cognitive impairment, we used Montreal Cognitive Assessment Scale (MoCA) and Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE). Of the total number of patients (n=31), 6/31 (19.4 %) were males and 25/31 (80.6 %) were females; the mean duration of the disorder was 23.5 years (SD=6.69). Seventeen patients (54.8%) of those who were on MMSE scale had a score greater or equal to 24 (normal range) and the MoCA scale had a normal score (&gt;21), while 11 (35.5%) patients reported moderate to severe cognitive impairment. Analysis of the correlation coefficient between the total score of MoCA and the MMSE scale indicates a statistically significant positive correlation with Spearman rho=0.81 and P

Schizophrenic or blind but not both

IntroductionAlthough visual impairment appears to be a risk factor for schizophrenia, early blindness may be protective. It’s a phenomenon that has puzzled even the smartest scientific brains for decades. It might surprise you: no person born blind has ever been diagnosed with schizophrenia.ObjectivesThe aim of this research is to discover the relationship between schizophrenia and congenital blindness and whether there is a protective gene and whether visual perception is an essential stage in the onset of diseases itself.MethodsIt’s a case study of a family consisting of 13 brothers and sisters, three of whom were blind at birth, three with schizophrenia. We proceeded with a study of the medical files of all the schizophrenic patients and also ophthalmological exams for all the family members.ResultsPreliminary observational analysis of this clinical case suggests the following hypothesis: the presumed protective role of congenital blindness against schizophrenia. Moreover, the ophthalmological exams showed no visual impairment in schizophrenic patients. The bibliographic research has objectified more than three recent studies in this direction.ConclusionsThe relationship between schizophrenia and congenital blindness is still unrecognized and controversial. Several studies are done in this neurodevelopmental field but so far there has been no assertion nor confirmation of the suggested hypothesis. More research is needed.DisclosureNo significant relationships.

Irreversible Primary Visual Cortex Impairment in a Mouse Model of High-Risk Schizophrenia.

PurposeAlthough visual deficits can be observed at any stage of schizophrenia, few studies have focused on visual cortex alterations in individuals at high risk of schizophrenia. This study aimed to investigate the pathological changes of the primary visual cortex in a prenatal mouse model of MK801-induced high-risk schizophrenia.MethodsThe high-risk schizophrenia model was generated by MK801 injection into pregnant mice. The male offspring without schizophrenia-like behaviors in early adulthood were defined as the high-risk mouse model of schizophrenia (HRMMS) and divided into two groups. One HRMMS group received the antipsychotic agent risperidone beginning at postnatal week 4 and another group did not receive any treatment. After treatment for 4 weeks, in vivo two-photon calcium imaging was performed to characterize the primary visual cortex activity. The novel object recognition test and the prepulse inhibition apparatus test were also implemented to assess the cognitive and behavioral performance, respectively.ResultsBoth groups of HRMMS mice, with or without antipsychotic treatment, had decreased neuronal calcium activity, demonstrating primary visual cortex impairment. More notably, antipsychotic treatment did not normalize the impaired neuronal activities in the primary visual cortex. Correspondingly, the treatment did not improve the cognitive or behavioral impairment.ConclusionVisual cortex impairment might be a prominent feature of individuals at high risk of schizophrenia that cannot be normalized by early treatment with antipsychotic medication, indicating the presence of independent regulatory pathways for visual perception disturbance in schizophrenia. Thus, visual system impairment in schizophrenic patients must be further studied.

Research on electroencephalogram specifics in patients with schizophrenia under cognitive load

Cognitive impairment is one of the three primary symptoms of schizophrenic patients and shows important value in early detection and warning for high-risk individuals. To study the specifics of electroencephalogram (EEG) in patients with schizophrenia under the cognitive load, we collected EEG signals from 17 schizophrenic patients and 19 healthy controls, extracted signals of each band based on wavelet transform, calculated the characteristics of nonlinear dynamic and functional brain networks, and automatically classified the two groups of people by using a machine learning algorithm. Experimental results indicated that the correlation dimension and sample entropy showed significant differences in α, β, θ, and γ rhythm of the Fp1 and Fp2 electrodes between groups under the cognitive load. These results implied that the functional disruptions in the frontal lobe might be the important factors of cognitive impairments in schizophrenic patients. Further results of the automatic classification analysis indicated that the combination of nonlinear dynamics and functional brain network properties as the input characteristics of the classifier showed the best performance, with the accuracy of 76.77%, sensitivity of 72.09%, and specificity of 80.36%. The results of this study demonstrated that the combination of nonlinear dynamics and function brain network properties may be potential biomarkers for early screening and auxiliary diagnosis of schizophrenia.

Cognitive impairment in patients with schizophrenia: A comparative study from western Rajasthan

Introduction: Cognitive impairment is the core feature of schizophrenia (SCZ). The affected individuals exhibit wide-ranging deficits involving multiple domains of cognitive functioning. These deficits are associated with poor functional outcome and residual disability in patients. Substantial literature exists on cognition in SCZ; however, few studies have been carried out on this subject in India and in particular in Rajasthan. Objective: The objective was to evaluate cognitive functions in SCZ patients and to compare these with healthy controls. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted at the psychiatry department of a tertiary care institution on fifty schizophrenic patients and matched healthy controls who fulfilled the inclusion criteria. Diagnosis was made by DSM-V criteria, and symptom severity was determined by the Positive and Negative Symptom Scale. After seeking sociodemographic details, all participants were administered Postgraduate Institute Battery of Brain Dysfunction to assess their cognitive functioning. Data collected were subjected to suitable statistical analysis (mean, standard deviation and Chi-square test). Results: Majority of the schizophrenic patients (56%) were under 35 years of age, were males (70%), were from urban background (66%) and were married (70%). Schizophrenic patients performed poorly on all domains of cognitive functioning, including memory, performance and verbal intelligence and perceptuo-motor skills. Conclusion: The present study reiterated the previous findings of wide-spread, multidomain cognitive impairment in schizophrenic patients. The resultant cognitive profile has important implications for the aetiology and treatment of this major psychiatric disorder.

Comparing Multiple Domains of Social Cognition in Schizophrenic Patients with vs. without Paranoid Symptoms

BackgroundVarious investigations demonstrated social cognitive impairments in schizophrenic patients. The impairments in schizophrenia patients are also associated with an increase in paranoid symptoms. However, comparing multiple domains of social cognition in subtypes of schizophrenia has received less attention.ObjectivesThe current study aimed at comparing multiple domains of social cognition in schizophrenic patients and the normal population as well as schizophrenic patients with and without paranoid symptom.MethodsIn this causal-comparative study, 44 schizophrenic patients with paranoid symptoms and 18 patients without paranoid symptom admitted to three schizophrenia care centers in Shiraz, from June 1st, 2017 to July 2nd, 2017 were evaluated. The control group included 38 staff of the studied centers. The research tools were the face emotion identification task, hinting task, and ambiguous intentions hostility questionnaire (AIHQ).ResultsWe used the multivariate analysis of variance to compare the functioning of the sample groups. Based on the results, schizophrenic patients with/without paranoid symptoms exhibited worse performance than normal individuals in emotion perception (P = 0.01, P = 0.01) and theory of mind (P = 0.01, P = 0.01) tasks; however, patients with and without paranoid symptoms did not differ in these tasks. With respect to AIHQ, schizophrenia patients with/without paranoid symptoms inclined to use hostile (P = 0.01, P = 0.02, respectively) and blaming (P = 0.01, P = 0.02, respectively) attributions compared with normal subjects. Moreover, patients with paranoid symptoms inclined to use more hostile and blaming attributions compared to patients without paranoid symptoms.ConclusionsThree variables of emotion perception, theory of mind, and hostile and blaming attributions were able to distinguish schizophrenia patients from healthy individuals, while only hostile and blaming attributions were able to distinguish patients with paranoid symptoms and those without paranoid symptoms.

Prevalence of Working Memory Impairment in Drug Naive Schizophrenic Patients in a Tertiary Care Hospital

Schizophrenia is a mental disorder in which clear consciousness and the intellectual capacity are usually maintained, although certain cognitive deficits may evolve in the course of illness. Working memory impairment in schizophrenia affects the course, outcome, and quality of life of the patient significantly. The aim of the study was to find out the prevalence of working memory impairment in drug naive schizophrenic patients. This descriptive cross-sectional study was done in a tertiary care hospital, from June 2015 to December 2015 after taking ethical clearance from institutional review board registration number 38970/062/063. Convenience sampling was done. The samples of 30 schizophrenic patients between the ages of 15 to 45 years were enrolled from the inpatient and outpatient unit of department according to inclusion and exclusion criteria. Data was collected and entry was done in Epi Info, point estimate at 95% Confidence Interval was calculated along with frequency and proportion for binary data. The prevalence of working memory impairment was 26 (86.7%) in digit span forward test and 27 (90%) in digit span backward test. The mean age of patients was 27.5 years and the age of onset of schizophrenia was mainly in the age group between 16 to 25 years 16 (53.3%). These finding suggests high prevalence of working memory impairment in schizophrenic patients.

Neurological soft signs in positive and negative subtypes of schizophrenia

Background: Schizophrenia, a heterogeneous clinical syndrome, has fascinated researchers since times immemorial. An increasing number of studies have implicated multiple brain regions, variations in the localization, and severity of brain impairments in schizophrenic patients that could ultimately lead to unraveling the etiopathogenesis of schizophrenia. A direct, easily administered, and inexpensive way of investigating brain dysfunction in schizophrenia is the study of neurological soft signs (NSS). Aim: To document the presence of NSS in positive and negative subtypes of schizophrenia and compare them with normal controls. Materials and Methods: The study was conducted on 52 schizophrenic patients diagnosed according to the International Classification of Diseases 10 Diagnostic Criteria for Research and 52 normal controls matched for age and education. All the patients gave written informed consent. NSS were assessed using Neurological Evaluation Scale (NES). Results: The prevalence of NSS in this study was estimated to be 77%. Statistically significant correlations were observed between the negative symptom subscale of Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale and the NES scores among the patients with schizophrenia. Conclusions: The comparison of the mean NES scores among cases and controls in this study reveals a very highly significant difference between the two groups studied. This suggests that NSS are highly prevalent among patients with schizophrenia.

Functional Dissociation of Confident and Not-Confident Errors in the Spatial Delayed Response Task Demonstrates Impairments in Working Memory Encoding and Maintenance in Schizophrenia

Even though extensively investigated, the nature of working memory (WM) deficits in patients with schizophrenia (PSZ) is not yet fully understood. In particular, the contribution of different WM sub-processes to the severe WM deficit observed in PSZ is a matter of debate. So far, most research has focused on impaired WM maintenance. By analyzing different types of errors in a spatial delayed response task (DRT), we have recently demonstrated that incorrect yet confident responses (which we labeled as false memory errors) rather than incorrect/not-confident responses reflect failures of WM encoding, which was also impaired in PSZ. In the present study, we provide further evidence for a functional dissociation between confident and not-confident errors by manipulating the demands on WM maintenance, i.e., the length over which information has to be maintained in WM. Furthermore, we investigate whether these functionally distinguishable WM processes are impaired in PSZ. Twenty-four PSZ and 24 demographically matched healthy controls (HC) performed a spatial DRT in which the length of the delay period was varied between 1, 2, 4, and 6 s. In each trial, participants also rated their level of response confidence. Across both groups, longer delays led to increased rates of incorrect/not-confident responses, while incorrect/confident responses were not affected by delay length. This functional dissociation provides additional support for our proposal that false memory errors (i.e., confident errors) reflect problems at the level of WM encoding, while not-confident errors reflect failures of WM maintenance. Schizophrenic patients showed increased numbers of both confident and not-confident errors, suggesting that both sub-processes of WM—encoding and maintenance—are impaired in schizophrenia. Combined with the delay length-dependent functional dissociation, we propose that these impairments in schizophrenic patients are functionally distinguishable.

Analysis of the influencing factors for the cognitive deficits in schizophrenic patients with diabetes

Objective To investigate the influencing factors of the cognitive deficits in schizophrenic patients with diabetes. Methods 578 inpatients with schizophrenia and 400 healthy adults were collected.578 schizophrenic patients were divided into schizophrenia group with type 2 diabetes (combined group, n=277) and schizophrenia without type 2 diabetes (single disease group, n=301). The cognitive function of all subjects were examined by the Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status(RBANS). The clinical symptoms of patients with schizophrenia were measured with the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale(PANSS). Fasting glucose, lipids, hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) and insulin levels were measured. Results The total score and factor scores of RBANS in the combined group were lower than those in the healthy control group (total score(70.51±14.43) vs (80.04±15.14), immediate memory(62.65±16.81) vs (75.66±17.33), visual span(83.60±20.81) vs (87.61±15.61), verbal function(85.58±14.64) vs (93.88±13.10), attention function(73.66±17.52) vs (87.42±20.37), delayed memory(75.27±17.80) vs (86.27±15.27), all P<0.05). The total score of RBANS, immediate memory and attention function factor were lower in the combined group than that in the single disease group ((70.51±14.43) vs (75.02±15.25), (62.65±16.81) vs (67.37±19.12), (73.66±17.52) vs (84.17±15.22), all P<0.05). Multiple linear stepwise regression analysis showed that education, negative symptoms, positive symptoms, BMI, HbAc1, course of disease and antipsychotic type were the influencing factors of cognitive impairment in schizophrenic patients with diabetes. Conclusion The cognitive impairment of schizophrenic patients with diabetes is more serious and affected by many factors.Targeted early intervention can help reduce cognitive impairment. Key words: Diabetes; Schizophrenia; Cognitive deficits; Influential factors

Increased local connectivity of brain functional networks during facial processing in schizophrenia: evidence from EEG data.

Schizophrenia is often considered to be a disconnection syndrome. The abnormal interactions between large-scale functional brain networks result in cognitive and perceptual deficits. The present study investigated event-related functional connectivity networks to compare facial processing in individuals with and without schizophrenia. Faces and tables were presented to participants, and event-related phase synchrony, represented by the phase lag index (PLI), was calculated. In addition, cortical oscillatory dynamics may be useful for understanding the neural mechanisms underlying the disparate cognitive and functional impairments in schizophrenic patients. Therefore, the dynamic graph theoretical networks related to facial processing were compared between individuals with and without schizophrenia. Our results showed that event-related phase synchrony was significantly reduced in distributed networks, and normalized clustering coefficients were significantly increased in schizophrenic patients relative to those of the controls. The present data suggest that schizophrenic patients have specific alterations, indicated by increased local connectivity in gamma oscillations during facial processing.

EPA-0417 – Gender-specific neurocognitive differences among schizophrenia patients

According to the data from literature the neurocognitive changes in schizophrenia are mild to moderate and are modestly related to negative symptoms. Cognitive deficits in schizophrenia are regarded by many psychiatrist as an important symptom, which requires appropriate treatment and rehabilitation. There are different conditions, which may have an influence cognitive impairment in schizophrenic patients. One the factors differentiating subgroups of schizophrenic patients when neuropsychological functioning is analyzed is sex. This Review was focused on cognitive functioning of schizophrenic patients of different sexes. In order to achieve this result PubMed was searched using following terms: cognitive functions, schizophrenia, gender differences, sex hormones, memory, attention, neuropsychological, psychopatological symptoms. Most of the analyzed papers reflecting the cognitive differences between men and women suffering from schizophrenia postulate a worse performance in neuropsychological test by male patients. However according to some authors there are no gender differences in cognitive functioning in schizophrenic patients or those differences are not clinically significant. The above analysis shows that there is a number of studies, according to which differences between men and women among schizophrenic patients are present, however the problem of sex-specific differences in cognitive functioning in patients in schizophrenia needs further investigation.

Validez de la Escala de Evaluación Cognitiva de Montreal (MoCA) para determinar deterioro cognitivo en pacientes con esquizofrenia

Introducción. La esquizofrenia es un trastorno mental que posee múltiples dimensiones sintomáticas y las alteraciones cognitivas son características cardinales en la evolución del trastorno. El uso de clinimetría para evaluar dichas deficiencias puede aportar información en la investigación en este campo. Objetivo. Determinar la validez y confiabilidad de la Escala de Evaluación Cognitiva Montreal (MoCA) para la evaluación del déficit cognitivo en pacientes con el diagnóstico de esquizofrenia. Material y métodos. Se evaluaron cien pacientes con diagnóstico de esquizofrenia reclutados en la Clínica de Esquizofrenia del Instituto Nacional de Psiquiatría Ramón de la Fuente Muñiz. Se aplicaron las escalas de MoCA, MMSE y PANSS para la valoración de las funciones cognitivas. Se estableció la confiabilidad del MoCA con el Alfa de Cronbach y se estableció su validez concurrente con el MMSE y la subescala cognitiva de la PANSS. Resultados. De acuerdo al MMSE (con ajuste de escolaridad) el 8% de los pacientes fueron clasificados con deterioro cognitivo en contraste con el puntaje total del MoCA que reporto 69% de la muestra con deterioro cognitivo. La escala MoCA obtuvo una confiabilidad (Alfa de Cronbach=0.71) similar a la observada por el MMSE (?=0.70) y adecuada validez concurrente. Conclusiones. La MoCA es un instrumento confiable y válido para establecer la presencia de deterioro cognitivo leve en pacientes con esquizofrenia, sencillo y de fácil aplicación en la práctica clínica psiquiátrica cotidiana.

Pattern of Attentional Task Impairment in Schizophrenic Patients: A Study Report

The present study attempted to find out the relationship between positive and negative clinical symptoms and various attentional task impairment in a group of schizophrenic patients. METHODS: Fifty schizophrenic patients were assessed using the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) by a trained psychiatrist (TKA) who was blind to attentional test measures and two groups, each of 25 positive symptom and 25 negative symptom schizophrenic patients, were formed. On these 50 patients with schizophrenia and 15 normal control groups, various attentional test measures were applied by a clinical psychologist (SS) who remained blind to the PANSS score. RESULTS: It was found that schizophrenic patients were deficient in performing simple auditory and visual attentional tasks in comparison to normal subjects. The results of this study are inconsistent with the assumption that deficits in attention are uniquely associated with negative symptoms. The findings clearly support the hypothesis of a relationship between type of attentional processing and “dimensions” of schizophrenic symptomatology. The positive symptoms patients seem to be associated with attentional dysfunction especially selective attention and short term recall, whereas negative symptoms patients seem to be associated with different types of attentional deficits, e.g., sustained attention and visual attention. CONCLUSIONS: The findings of our study are consistent with the existing literature that schizophrenic patients in general perform poorly on various measures of attentional tasks. Positive and negative symptoms schizophrenics have some correlation with distinct attentional deficits.DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3126/jucms.v1i2.8402 Journal of Universal College of Medical Sciences Vol.1(2) 2013: 1-7

Facial emotion perception abnormality in patients with early schizophrenia

BackgroundDeficit in facial emotion perception is an important social cognitive impairment in schizophrenic patients, and it is one of the key determinants of functional outcome in schizophrenia. However, the moderating effect of social context and the boundary of perceptual categories of facial emotion perception remain unclear. MethodA total of 36 schizophrenic outpatients in their early stage of illness and 43 healthy controls were recruited for evaluation of social and clinical characteristics, neurocognitive profiles, and facial emotion categorization (FEC) performance. FEC was assessed by a computer-based program with 120 trials, in which social context was presented in the form of a preceding question, in order to simulate the conditions of being praised (positive), blamed (negative), or inquiry (neutral), while the participants were asked to judge a photograph derived from one of the five facial images in a happy-angry emotion continuum. The FEC data was inserted into a logistic function model with subsequent analysis by repeated measures ANOVA and the shift point and slope as outcome measures. ResultsSchizophrenic patients were significantly more likely to perceive ambiguous and subtle facial expressions as happy, rather than angry, in all three social contexts. However, the interaction effects between group and context for FEC performance was not significant. ConclusionsSchizophrenic patients, even in their early stage of illness, appear to have abnormal perceptions of facial emotion categories, which may explain some of their abnormal social interactions and disabilities. This study provides additional information in understanding social cognitive deficits among schizophrenic patients.

Correction: Common Variants in MAGI2 Gene Are Associated with Increased Risk for Cognitive Impairment in Schizophrenic Patients

Correction: Common Variants in MAGI2 Gene Are Associated with Increased Risk for Cognitive Impairment in Schizophrenic Patients

Common Variants in MAGI2 Gene Are Associated with Increased Risk for Cognitive Impairment in Schizophrenic Patients

Schizophrenia is a complex psychiatric disorder characterized by positive symptoms, negative symptoms, and cognitive impairment. MAGI2, a relatively large gene (∼1.5 Mbps) that maps to chromosome 7q21, is involved in recruitment of neurotransmitter receptors such as AMPA- and NMDA-type glutamate receptors. A genetic association study designed to evaluate the association between MAGI2 and cognitive performance or schizophrenia has not been conducted. In this case-control study, we examined the relationship of single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) variations in MAGI2 and risk for schizophrenia in a large Japanese sample and explored the potential relationships between variations in MAGI2 and aspects of human cognitive function related to glutamate activity. Based on the result of first schizophrenia genome-wide association study in a Japanese population (JGWAS), we selected four independent SNPs and performed an association study using a large independent Japanese sample set (cases 1624, controls 1621). Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST) was used to evaluate executive function in 114 cases and 91 controls. We found suggestive evidence for genetic association of common SNPs within MAGI2 locus and schizophrenia in Japanese population. Furthermore in terms of association between MAGI2 and cognitive performance, we observed that genotype effect of rs2190665 on WCST score was significant (p = 0.034) and rs4729938 trended toward significance (p = 0.08). In conclusion, although we could not detect strong genetic evidence for association of common variants in MAGI2 and increased schizophrenia risk in a Japanese population, these SNPs may increase risk of cognitive impairment in schizophrenic patients.

Correlation Between MoCA and MMSE For the Assessment of Cognition in Schizophrenia

Introduction:Schizophrenia (Sch) is a complex neurodevelopmental disorder associated with impairment of cognitive function as a central feature, which is confirmed by a number of studies performed on patients suffering from Sch, where clinical symptoms and social functioning of patients are consequences of neurocognitive deficits.Goal:The goal of this study was to assess the clinical usability of the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) as a screening instrument for cognitive impairment in schizophrenic patients, alone and in correlation with the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE).Material and methods:This clinical prospective study included 30 patients diagnosed with schizophrenia. Patients were selected from Psychiatric Clinic, Clinical Center University of Sarajevo (CCUS) during 2010. For assessment of cognitive impairment we used Montreal Cognitive Assessment Scale (MoCA) and Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE).Results:From the total number of respondents (n=30), 15/30 (50 %) were males and 15/30 (50 %) were females; age of onset were 23.5±6.69; duration of illness before hospitalization (mean±SD) 32.5±12.9. If we make a comparison of MoCA scale and MMSE under the limit values, then we get that there was 10 true positive, 4 true negative, 14 false positive and 2 false negative. This all leads to sensitivity of MoCA scale again in comparison with the MMSE of 41.7%, specificity 66.7%, positive predictive value of 83.3% and negative predictive value of 22.2%.Conclusions:Our findings provide preliminary evidence that MoCA scale performs well in detecting true positive but it is imprecise in the detection of true negative findings.