Abstract
Background: Kraepelin originally conceptualized schizophrenia as a degenerative brain
disorder. It remains unclear whether the illness is characterized by a static encephalopathy
or a deterioration of brain function, or periods of each condition. Assessments of
cognitive function, as measured by neuropsychologic assessment, can provide additional
insight into this question. Few studies of patients with schizophrenia have investigated
the effect of aging on executive functions, in an extensive neuropsychologic battery
across a wide age range, compared to healthy volunteers.
Methods: We examined the interaction of aging and neuropsychologic function in schizophrenia
through a cross-sectional study in patients (n = 87) and healthy control subjects (n = 94). Subjects were divided into three age groups (20–35, 36–49, and 50–75), and
performance on an extensive neuropsychologic battery was evaluated.
Results: Compared to control subjects, patients with schizophrenia demonstrated similar
age-related declines across most neuropsychologic functions, with the exception of
abstraction ability, in which significant evidence of a more accelerated decline was
observed.
Conclusions: These results are consistent with previous reports indicating similar
age effects on most aspects of cognition in patients with schizophrenia and healthy
adults, but they support the hypothesis that a degenerative process may result in
a more accelerated decline of some executive functions in older age in schizophrenia.
Keywords
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Article info
Publication history
Accepted:
January 13,
2000
Received in revised form:
January 12,
2000
Received:
August 9,
1999
Identification
Copyright
© 2000 Society of Biological Psychiatry. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
