Early-onset schizophrenia (EOS) is considered to be more severe form of the disease than the adulthood – onset schizophrenia (AOS). Cognitive dysfunctions impair patient’s psychosocial functioning, mostly in EOS. Part of the research showed, that EOS is significantly associated with greater risk of deterioration of cognitive functions than in AOS (McClellan et at. 2004; Rajji et al. 2009). Other studies suggested the same level of cognitive dysfunction in both form of schizophrenia (Biswas et al. 2006; Holmén et al. 2012). Some research reported stabilization of cognitive deficits in the course of schizophrenia (Frangou et al. 2008; Sponheim et al.2010).
The purpose of this research was to assess the cognitive functioning in EOS in comparison with AOS with the same duration of disease (at least ten years) with community-based support system.
The outpatients with paranoid schizophrenia (EOS/AOS) were investigated in their full symptomatic remission. Schizophrenia was diagnosed based on ICD-10 criteria. Most of them were treated with second generation antipsychotics. Psychopathological symptoms were assessed with the PANSS scale and general functioning with the GAF scale. Cognitive functioning was evaluated with WCST, N-back, TMT A&B, VFT, CVLT.
Clinical groups differed significantly between each other: age, education and disability. No differences in all cognitive tests between EOS and AOS group were observed. Significant dysfunctions of various aspects of cognitive functions were found in the EOS and AOS, as compared to the control groups, but in some parts of the tests, individuals with schizophrenia and healthy subjects did not differ.
The results suggest that the EOS and AOS have the same level of cognitive functioning after many years of psychosis. Probably EOS might not be associated with deterioration of cognitive functions but with their stabilization or improvement when long-term integrated therapy is used.
