Biomedical subjects

A Van Der Elst

Publications and source records attributed to A Van Der Elst.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2002

Cognitive patterns in subtypes of schizophrenia.

AIM: Because of the heterogeneity of schizophrenia, this study researched different cognitive patterns in distinct subtypes of schizophrenic patients. METHODS: Thirty-five Diagnostic and Statistical Manual IV (DSM IV) schizophrenic patients and 35 healthy controls were included. Patients were categorized into deficit, disorganized and positive subtypes with the schedule for the deficit syndrome (SDS) and the positive and negative syndrome scale (PANSS). Executive/attentional functions were assessed with the modified card sorting test (MCST), a test of verbal fluency, the trail making test (TMT) and the Stroop color-word test (Stroop test). Episodic memory was explored through the California verbal learning test (CVLT). RESULTS: The positive subtype had some executive/attentional (fluency and Stroop tests) and mnesic performances in the normal range, suggesting the preservation of good cognitive skills. In contrast, the deficit and disorganized subtypes had major mnesic and executive/attentional dysfunctions compared to healthy subjects. The deficit subtype compared to the control group performed predominantly worse on the MCST and fluency, whereas the disorganized subtype had the lowest scores on the TMT and the Stroop test. CONCLUSION: This study showed distinct cognitive patterns in deficit, disorganized and positive patients in comparison with the controls, suggesting a heterogeneous cognitive dysfunction in schizophrenia.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2001

Saccadic and smooth-pursuit eye movements in deficit and non-deficit schizophrenia.

We have analyzed eye movement performances in schizophrenics showing primary negative or deficit symptoms (n=16) and non-deficit schizophrenics (n=55), and compared them with those of controls (n=34) in order to study the relationships between negative symptoms and eye movement abnormalities. Patients were subtyped into deficit and non-deficit subgroups using the Schedule for the Deficit Syndrome. Three oculomotor paradigms were used: smooth pursuit, a reflexive saccade paradigm and an antisaccadic task. The smooth pursuit gain was significantly decreased (and the rate of catch-up saccades increased) in schizophrenics as compared with controls, but no difference was observed between patient groups. In the reflexive saccade paradigm, no difference was found between controls and patients, except for latency in deficit patients. In the antisaccade paradigm, the number of errors and the latency of successful antisaccades were significantly increased in schizophrenics as compared with controls. The latency of successful antisaccades in both directions was significantly increased in deficit patients as compared with non-deficit patients. The latency of rightward successful antisaccades was significantly increased as compared with the latency of leftward antisaccades in deficit patients only. However, when patients were classified into negative and non-negative groups using the PANSS, no difference was found in the antisaccade paradigm. Smooth pursuit impairment does not seem to depend on the primary enduring negative symptoms.In deficit schizophrenics, the abnormalities observed in the antisaccadic task are consistent with prefrontal dysfunction, and may suggest parietal lobe dysfunction as well.

Adult↗

PubMed1999

Month of birth in deficit and non-deficit schizophrenic patients.

In order to test the hypothesis that an excess of summer births is a risk factor for deficit syndrome, the month of birth was studied in 53 deficit schizophrenic patients compared to 158 non-deficit patients. No significant difference in terms of month of birth or season of birth was observed between deficit and non-deficit patients, suggesting that summer births might not be a risk factor for deficit schizophrenia.

Adult↗

PubMed1999

Apolipoprotein E-varepsilon4 frequency in deficit schizophrenia.

The apolipoprotein E (ApoE) genotype has been found to affect the expression of several neuropsychiatric disorders. We determined ApoE genotype frequencies and their relationship to primary negative symptoms in 61 non-deficit and 45 deficit schizophrenic patients, and compared them with 98 control subjects. No difference was observed when genotype or allele frequencies were compared between the three groups. Our data do not support a role for ApoE in the phenotypic expression of schizophrenia.

Adult↗