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ABSTRACT: A specific composition of temperament traits with high novelty seeking (NS), high harm avoidance (HA), and low reward dependence (RD) has been attributed to adult patients with borderline personality disorder (BPD). This study examined whether an analogue personality profile is specifically associated with adolescent BPD. The female study sample comprised 33 adolescents with BPD, 35 clinical controls (CCs), and 31 healthy controls (HCs). Dimensions of temperament and character were measured according to Cloninger's biopsychosocial model of personality. Significantly higher means of NS and HA but lower means of RD could be determined in the adolescents with BPD compared with the CCs and the HCs. The comparable findings of this specific temperament constellation in adolescents and adult patients with BPD suggest that heritable factors such as temperamental traits may contribute to the vulnerability for developing BPD. Early identification of a "borderline temperament" may facilitate early intervention and lower the risk for developing BPD.
The Journal of nervous and mental disease 02/2013; 201(2):109-15. · 1.77 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Previous imaging studies have described gray and white matter alterations in the cerebellum, the posterior aspects of the visual system and in the corpus callosum in patients with schizophrenia. Here, we investigated these regions in more detail using Tract-Based Spatial Statistics (TBSS). Additionally, we evaluated potential changes in lateralization of the optic radiation and the superior cerebellar peduncle. MATERIAL AND METHODS: We studied 12 patients with first-admission schizophrenia and a group of age-matched healthy controls. The diffusion tensor imaging data were preprocessed using tract-based spatial statistics and the obtained white matter skeleton was used to perform a regional analysis of fractional anisotropy in the corpus callosum, the optic radiation, and the superior and middle cerebellar peduncles. RESULTS: Using TBSS, a significant reduction of fractional anisotropy in the whole corpus callosum and the optic radiation but not in the middle and superior cerebellar peduncles was found. Furthermore, a significantly decreased lateralization of the optic radiation and the superior cerebellar peduncles in patients was observed. CONCLUSION: Our findings substantiate the concept that schizophrenia is a neurodevelopmental disorder and indicate that changes in lateralization may play a key role in the pathogenesis of this disease.
Neuroscience Letters 01/2013; · 2.11 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: This study aimed to investigate a specific relationship between nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI) and a variety of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) over and above childhood abuse and their impact on frequency, severity, and functions of NSSI. A sample of 125 inpatients (aged 13 to 26) was consecutively recruited within a psychiatric university hospital. Frequency, methods and functions of NSSI were assessed by the Functional Assessment of Self-Mutilation (FASM), ACEs were assessed by the Childhood Experiences of Care and Abuse Questionnaire (CECA.Q). The 12month prevalence of NSSI in this representative, clinical sample was 60.0%. Engagement in NSSI was significantly related to ACEs with highest associations for maternal antipathy and neglect. Whilst ACEs were not associated with frequency or severity of NSSI, some ACEs were significantly related to the automatic functions of NSSI (e.g., affect regulation, anti-dissociative function or self-punishment) as well as to a peer identification function. NSSI represents a frequent phenomenon among young clinical populations and seems to be specifically related to ACEs with maternal antipathy or neglect commonly featured over and above experiences of abuse. Since ACEs also influence the functions of NSSI such factors need to be examined as part of clinical care planning.
Psychiatry research. 11/2012;
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ABSTRACT: Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) is a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) technique that provides information on the fiber architecture of the brain by measuring water diffusion. Prior work has shown that neuronal degeneration in Alzheimer's disease (AD) and mild cognitive impairment (MCI) alters this architecture. Since the conversion rate to AD is much higher for MCI patients than for normal healthy people, it is important to identify biomarkers with a predictive value on this conversion. In this study, we applied tract-based spatial statistics (TBSS) on datasets of 15 healthy controls, 15 AD patients, and 17 MCI patients. Of these MCI patients eight remained stable, whereas nine developed AD within the first 12-18months of follow-up investigations. Analysis using TBSS combined with a maximum likelihood regression with random effects of the fornix, the corpus callosum, and the cingulum identified significant differences between these two types of MCI patients in fractional anisotropy (FA) and radial diffusivity (DR). Thus, DTI reveals Alzheimer-specific changes in those MCI subjects that later convert, although they were clinically identical to the other MCI-patients at the time the data were acquired. This finding could lead to early identification of AD and thereby aid early clinical intervention.
Psychiatry research. 09/2012; 203(2-3):184-93.
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ABSTRACT: Background: Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is known to be associated with high rates of comorbidity and severe impairment of psychosocial functioning in adults. The aim of this study was to investigate Axis I and Axis II disorders, as well as psychosocial functioning, in a clinical sample of adolescents with BPD and to compare these with participants with mixed psychiatric diagnoses. Methods: Female adolescent patients were consecutively recruited from the child and adolescent psychiatry department of a university hospital. Axis I and Axis II diagnoses were assessed by experienced clinicians using well-established semistructured interviews, along with psychosocial functioning. Results: The final sample (87 participants) comprised 31 participants with a diagnosis of BPD and 56 participants with mixed psychiatric diagnoses. The most common comorbid disorders in the adolescent BPD sample were mood, eating, dissociative, and substance use disorders in Axis I, and cluster C personality disorders in Axis II. The BPD group showed a significantly higher average number of comorbid Axis I and Axis II diagnoses and significantly lower psychosocial functioning compared with the clinical control group. Regression analyses revealed that psychosocial functioning was predicted by socioeconomic status and comorbid disorders, as well as the unique influence of BPD itself. Conclusion: Adolescent BPD in females is accompanied by high rates of psychiatric comorbidity and poor psychosocial functioning. This underscores the need for diagnosis of BPD at its early stages, in order to facilitate appropriate interventions.
Psychopathology 08/2012; · 1.82 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: Several diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) studies involving adults and adolescents with schizophrenia have examined fractional anisotropy (FA) in the corpus callosum (CC) with conflicting findings. This may be due to confounding factors such as the chronicity of the disorder, long-term medication with psychotropics or methodological differences. To provide a clearer picture of early alterations, we examined 13 adolescents with first-admission schizophrenia and 13 healthy controls using a region-of-interest approach based on probabilistic voxel classification. We quantified FA in four subdivisions of the CC and hypothesized that adolescents with schizophrenia display a reduced FA in the genu associated with 'hypofrontality' and a reduced FA in the body of the CC linked to the heteromodal association cortex. Fiber integrity measurements revealed significant FA decreases in the genu and body of the CC in adolescents with schizophrenia compared to healthy controls. These findings emphasize the central role of the CC in even the early stages of schizophrenia and lend weight to hypotheses about frontal alterations and the central role of the heteromodal association cortex in the aetiopathogenesis of the disorder.
Neuroscience Letters 02/2012; 513(2):178-82. · 2.11 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Previous studies have found gray matter alterations in the cerebellum and in the visual system in both adults and adolescents with schizophrenia. The present study was conducted to investigate whether white matter tracts associated with these regions are also affected in the early stages of the disorder. METHODS: Using a 1.5 Tesla magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanner and fiber tracking, the optic radiations and the middle cerebellar peduncles were examined in 13 adolescents with first-admission schizophrenia and 13 healthy controls matched for age, gender, school type, and handedness. RESULTS: Patients with schizophrenia displayed significantly decreased fractional anisotropy in the optic radiations, but no differences in the middle cerebellar peduncles compared to healthy controls. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings of altered fiber integrity in the optic radiations in adolescents with schizophrenia are in line with gray matter alterations in the visual cortices previously reported in the same sample and are in accordance with other studies that found decreased fractional anisotropy in these regions. These findings support the view that the visual system plays an important role in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia and may enhance our understanding of associations between the visual cortex and symptoms of the disorder. J Neuroimaging 2012;XX:1-6.
Journal of neuroimaging: official journal of the American Society of Neuroimaging 01/2012; · 1.72 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: So far there are contradictory findings concerning the degree of negative influence of attention deficit disorders, external or socio-emotional disorders on academic development of a child. Therefore the present epidemiologic study analyses the relationship between clinically relevant problems and academic achievement of fourth graders (measured by recommendation for secondary school: A-level, B-level or C-level). Children (N = 3910) were rated by their parents by anonymised questionnaires (Child Behavior Checklist CBCL) at the end of primary school. Especially in the field of attention deficit, somatic and anxiety/depression disorders, many children were in a clinically relevant range compared to German norm data. It became obvious that future C-level pupils are particularly strong, multiply problem troubled, with constantly higher problems at all subscales. Mainly attention deficit disorders proved to be relevant for academic achievement, but also delinquent behaviour and social problems, which enhance the relative risk of recommendation for B- or C-level considerably. Early applied preventive interventions supporting social and cognitive development seem therefore of central importance for the school career of primary school children.
Praxis der Kinderpsychologie und Kinderpsychiatrie 01/2012; 61(9):662-76. · 0.58 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: To investigate associations between risky and pathologic internet use with depression, deliberate self-harm and suicidal behaviour among a representative sample of German adolescents. A total of 1,435 students (48% boys, 52% girls) from the area of Heidelberg/Germany were recruited during the SEYLE study, a European school-based intervention study and completed an assessment of different questionnaires, including the Young Diagnostic Questionnaire for the assessment of risky and pathological internet use, the Beck Depression Inventory, the Deliberate Self Harm Inventory, and the Paykel Suicide Scale. 80.7% of the students reported regular, 14.5% risky, and 4.8% pathological internet use. The risky and the pathological internet users showed significant higher rates of depression, deliberate self-harm and suicidal behaviour compared to students with regular internet use. Remarkably, there were no significant differences of levels of depression and suicidal behaviour between risky and pathological users. These results suggest that not only pathologic internet use but also risky internet use is associated with symptoms of depression, self-harm and suicidal behaviour. Therefore, more attention should be paid to adolescents with risky internet use for the early recognition of depression, self-harm and suicidality in adolescence.
Praxis der Kinderpsychologie und Kinderpsychiatrie 01/2012; 61(1):16-31. · 0.58 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: The apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) derived from diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) correlates inversely with tumor proliferation rates. High-grade gliomas are typically heterogeneous and the delineation of areas of high and low proliferation is impeded by partial volume effects and blurred borders. Commonly used manual delineation is further impeded by potential overlap with cerebrospinal fluid and necrosis. Here we present an algorithm to reproducibly delineate and probabilistically quantify the ADC in areas of high and low proliferation in heterogeneous gliomas, resulting in a reproducible quantification in regions of tissue inhomogeneity. We used an expectation maximization (EM) clustering algorithm, applied on a Gaussian mixture model, consisting of pure superpositions of Gaussian distributions. Soundness and reproducibility of this approach were evaluated in 10 patients with glioma. High- and low-proliferating areas found using the clustering correspond well with conservative regions of interest drawn using all available imaging data. Systematic placement of model initialization seeds shows good reproducibility of the method. Moreover, we illustrate an automatic initialization approach that completely removes user-induced variability. In conclusion, we present a rapid, reproducible and automatic method to separate and quantify heterogeneous regions in gliomas.
Cancer Imaging 01/2012; 12:89-99. · 1.50 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: Zusammenfassung und Hintergrund. Wiederkehrende Schmerzen, insbesondere Kopfschmerzen vom Spannungstyp und Migräne, treten bereits häufig im Jugendalter auf. Ein evaluiertes musiktherapeutisches Behandlungsmanual für Kinder mit Migräne liegt bereits vor. Die hier vorgestellte Vorstudie untersuchte die Adaptation dieses Behandlungsmanuals für jugendliche Patienten mit wiederkehrenden primären Kopfschmerzen in Vorbereitung einer Hauptstudie zur spezifischen Wirksamkeit des Behandlungsansatzes.Material und Methoden. Zwei alternative Behandlungsmodelle (Dosis-Zeit-Relation) wurden hinsichtlich ihrer Durchführbarkeit an einer ambulanten Stichprobe (n=19) evaluiert. Die Hauptzielkriterien Kopfschmerzfrequenz und -intensität wurden durch standardisierte Tagebücher über den Zeitraum von 2 Monaten vor und nach der Therapie erhoben.Ergebnisse. Die Pilotstudie belegt die gute Durchführbarkeit beider Behandlungsvarianten in der ambulanten Praxis. Beide Patientengruppen profitierten von der Intervention im Sinne einer Reduktion der Schmerzhäufigkeit und -stärke. Die Evaluation der klinischen Bedeutsamkeit dieser Effekte wird Ziel der Hauptstudie sein.Schlussfolgerung. Das musiktherapeutische Behandlungsmanual für Kinder mit Migräne ist auch in der Behandlung Jugendlicher mit wiederkehrenden, primären Kopfschmerzen unabhängig von der Dosis-Zeit-Relation durchführbar. Weitere Studien zur Wirksamkeit unter kontrollierten Bedingungen werden benötigt.
Background. Recurrent pain, especially primary headache, is a serious health problem in adolescents. Music therapy in the treatment of children with migraine has already been evaluated. The aim of this pilot study was to adopt this treatment manual for adolescent patients with recurrent primary headache in preparation for the main randomized controlled trial.Patients and methods. In this pilot study two different modes of treatment (standard and compact treatment) were tested in an outpatient setting with 19 patients. Frequency and intensity of headache symptoms were evaluated using pain diaries for 8 weeks in a pre-post design.Results. The pilot study showed good feasibility of both treatment conditions in outpatient practice. Patients reported a reduction of pain frequency and intensity in both groups. The evaluation of the clinical relevance of these effects remains the objective for the main trial.Conclusions. The music therapeutic treatment plan for children with migraine is even feasible in the treatment of adolescents with recurrent, primary headache. Further evidence questioning the effectiveness of the treatment under controlled conditions is needed.
Psychotherapeut 01/2012; · 0.36 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: Imaging studies of patients with schizophrenia have described a variety of cerebral alterations. However, long-term medication and the chronicity of the disorder may have contributed substantially to these alterations. Studies examining patients in the early stages of the disorder reduce the possibility of such confounding factors but are rare. In light of this, the aim of the present study was to examine adolescents in the early stages of the disorder to observe primary structural brain abnormalities.
Gray and white matter were measured in 13 adolescents with schizophrenia and 13 healthy controls matched for age, gender, handedness, and school type using voxel-based morphometry.
Subjects with schizophrenia displayed decreased gray matter in the cerebellar vermis, and alterations in the left putamen and in several parts of the visual system.
These findings support cerebellar involvement in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia, and the alterations observed in several parts of the visual system may provide insights into the nature of hallucinations and delusional interpretations.
Journal of neuroimaging: official journal of the American Society of Neuroimaging 07/2011; 21(3):241-6. · 1.72 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: To investigate the neuroendocrinological stress response to acute psychosocial stress in a clinical sample of female adolescents engaging in nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI).
The Trier Social Stress Test (TSST), a standardized psychosocial stress protocol, was performed in 14 female patients who engaged in NSSI and 14 healthy control subjects. NSSI was assessed by the Functional Assessment of Self-Mutilation (FASM). Salivary cortisol, heart rate, and affective states, assessed by the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS), were measured during the TSST.
We found an attenuated cortisol response to acute psychosocial stress in female adolescents with NSSI, whereas no group differences were observed in heart rate and emotional response to the TSST.
These findings indicate that the HPA axis is hyporesponsive in adolescents with NSSI. Therefore, reduced secretion of cortisol could play a role in promoting vulnerability of these individuals to acute stress and maladaptive stress responses.
Psychoneuroendocrinology 06/2011; 37(1):157-61. · 5.81 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: Validation of the German translation of a questionnaire and the corresponding interview for the assessment of adverse childhood experiences within the family environment and investigation of an association of these experiences with suicidal behaviour.
The questionnaire was tested in a consecutively recruited sample of 125 psychiatric inpatients (aged 13 to 25 years) at the University Hospital Heidelberg. Retests and corresponding interviews were also performed. Suicidal behaviour was measured by the Paykel Suicide Scale.
The questionnaire and interview showed very good internal consistency and retest reliability; the interrater reliability of the interview was good, and there was a significant correlation between the questionnaire and the interview. Suicidal behaviour was significantly associated to all adverse childhood experiences, but maternal neglect and antipathy proved to be the best predictors of suicidal behaviour.
The CECA instruments are reliable and valid instruments for the assessment of adverse childhood experiences. They assess a broad spectrum of adverse childhood experiences including negative bonding experiences. The association of these experiences to higher levels of suicidal behaviour shows the importance of assessing such experiences in research and therapy.
Zeitschrift für Kinder- und Jugendpsychiatrie und Psychotherapie 01/2011; 39(4):243-52. · 0.99 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: While suicide is the second leading cause of death among young people in most industrial countries, non-fatal suicidal behaviour is also a very important public health concern among adolescents. The aim of this study was to investigate gender differences in prevalence and emotional and behavioural correlates of suicidal behaviour in a representative school-based sample of adolescents.
A cross-sectional design was used to assess suicidal behaviour and various areas of emotional and behavioural problems by using a self-report booklet including the Youth Self-Report. One hundred sixteen schools in a region of Southern Germany agreed to participate. A representative sample of 5,512 ninth-grade students was studied. Mean age was 14.8 years (SD 0.73); 49.8% were female.
Serious suicidal thoughts were reported by 19.8% of the female students and 10.8% of the females had ever attempted suicide. In the male group, 9.3% had a history of suicidal thoughts and 4.9% had previously attempted suicide. Internalizing emotional and behavioural problems were shown to be higher in the female group (difference of the group means 4.41) while externalizing emotional and behavioural problems slightly predominated in male students (difference of the group means -0.65). However, the total rate of emotional and behavioural problems was significantly higher in the adolescent female group (difference of the group means 4.98). Using logistic regression models with suicidal thoughts or attempted suicide as dependent variables, the pseudo-R2 of gender alone was only 2.7% or 2.3%, while it was 30% or 23.2% for emotional and behavioural problems measured by the YSR syndrome scales. By adding gender to the emotional and behavioural problems only an additional 0.3% of information could be explained.
The findings suggest that gender differences in non-fatal suicidal behaviour among adolescents can to a large extent be explained by the gender differences in emotional and behavioural problems during this age.
BMC Public Health 01/2011; 11:597. · 2.00 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: Although numerous studies concerning P300 have been reported in adults, few have focused on the normal development of children, particularly in relation to habituation. The aim of this study was to investigate maturation of the P300 component and its habituation (short-term automatic learning) in a sample of healthy children and adolescents. Four models of maturation of the P300 (linear, quadratic or two different linear regressions for the pre-pubertal and pubertal age groups as well as age-inverse) were applied and compared, in order to find the most adequate model according to the Bayesian Information Criterion. A visual oddball paradigm was presented to 81 healthy children and adolescents aged 6-18 years. Three blocks, each with 200 trials were recorded to assess between-block habituation. The data was best fitted to (a) an age-inverse relation between P300 latency and age, and (b) a linear relationship between P300 amplitude and age. An age-dependent effect of habituation was detected in the P300 amplitude, where a considerable amplitude decline was found in the younger children and no significant change for adolescents. Our results support the hypothesis that younger children show stronger habituation effects because they activate a larger neuronal pool from which unnecessary neurons can be excluded during short-term learning. In contrast, in adolescents, these neurons may have already been eliminated as a consequence of pruning, thus reducing habituation effects. Future studies are required to test this hypothesis because our data do not permit alternative explanations to be discarded.
International journal of psychophysiology: official journal of the International Organization of Psychophysiology 10/2010; 79(2):184-94. · 3.05 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: Previous research has implicated a general hypervigilance for negative emotional words in adults with borderline personality disorder (BPD) as compared to healthy controls. The purpose of this study was to assess initial orienting to negative and positive emotional faces in female adolescents with BPD.
Adolescent patients with BPD (n = 30), adolescent patients with other psychiatric diagnoses (n = 29) and adolescent healthy comparison subjects (n = 29) were tested with the visual dot probe task to examine attentional orienting to emotional and neutral faces.
In contrast to the adolescent healthy comparison subjects, both the adolescent patients with BPD and the adolescent patients with other psychiatric diagnoses showed a stronger orienting to negative emotional stimuli. However, no differences were found between the clinical groups. Data regarding positive stimuli showed that BPD is not associated with a specific orienting to positive faces.
These findings suggest that attentional orienting to negative faces is not specific to adolescent patients with BPD but also affects adolescent patients with other psychiatric diagnoses. Furthermore, no distortion in information processing concerning positive cues was observed in adolescent patients with BPD. If these findings were confirmed, further BPD research could no longer assume that BPD is specifically associated with distortions in initial orienting processes.
Psychopathology 01/2010; 43(2):79-87. · 1.82 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: Bias in emotional information processing has been described in patients with borderline personality disorder (BPD). This study investigates whether adolescent patients with a diagnosis of BPD demonstrate abnormalities in attentional maintenance in viewing emotional faces.
Thirty female adolescents with a diagnosis of BPD, 29 female adolescents with mixed psychiatric diagnoses, and 30 healthy participants were tested with the visual dot probe task. The task involved showing photographs of actors with faces depicting neutral, negative, and positive expressions for 1,500 ms each.
Attentional bias to negative faces was not generally associated with BPD, but patients with BPD did show a strong correlation between current mood and attentional bias to negative faces. Only in adolescents with BPD did attention to negative faces narrow when they were currently in a state of negative mood. Conversely, both control groups avoided negative faces in conjunction with a decline in positive mood.
This study indicates that borderline pathology is linked to an inability to disengage attention from negative facial expressions during attentional maintenance when in a negative mood. Based on these findings, mood-dependent therapeutic interventions focusing on attentional processes may represent a useful add-on to established therapies in patients with BPD.
Psychopathology 11/2009; 43(1):25-32. · 1.82 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: There is evidence that adults with borderline personality disorder (BPD) are characterized by abnormalities in frontolimbic brain areas. In this study we aimed to determine whether brain volume alterations already exist in adolescents with BPD. Sixty female right-handed individuals (age range, 14-18 years), 20 with a DSM-IV diagnosis of borderline personality disorder, 20 patients with a DSM-IV defined current psychiatric disorder and 20 healthy control subjects were included. Groups were matched for age and IQ. Using a 3 T MRI scanner, we collected 1 mm axial sections using a three-dimensional sagittal isotropic Magnetization Prepared Rapid Acquisition Gradient Echo (MPRAGE) sequence. Images were analyzed using voxel-based morphometry (VBM). Voxel-based analysis revealed that adolescents with BPD showed reduced gray matter in the dorsolateral cortex (DLPFC) bilaterally and in the left orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) relative to healthy control subjects. Adolescent clinical control subjects displayed significantly decreased gray matter volume in the right DLPFC in comparison with healthy control subjects. No significant gray matter differences were detected between the BPD group and the clinical control group. No group differences were found in the limbic system or in any white matter structures. The present study indicates that the early morphological changes in BPD are located in the PFC. However, these changes may not be BPD specific since similar changes were found in the clinical control group. Changes in limbic brain volumes and white matter structures might occur over the course of the illness.
NeuroImage 09/2009; 49(1):114-20. · 5.89 Impact Factor
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Heiner Meng,
Benno Graf Schimmelmann,
Eginhard Koch,
Barbara Bailey, Peter Parzer,
Michael Günter,
Beat Mohler,
Natalia Kunz,
Michael Schulte-Markwort,
Wilhelm Felder,
Rudolf Zollinger,
Dieter Bürgin,
Franz Resch
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ABSTRACT: Cognitive-perceptive 'basic symptoms' are used complementary to ultra-high-risk criteria in order to predict onset of psychosis in the pre-psychotic phase. The aim was to investigate the prevalence of a broad selection of 'basic symptoms' in a representative general adolescent population sample (GPS; N=96) and to compare it with adolescents first admitted for early onset psychosis (EOP; N=87) or non-psychotic psychiatric disorders (NP; N=137).
Subjects were assessed with the Bonn Scale for the Assessment of Basic Symptoms (BSABS). Prevalence of at least one 'basic symptom' and mean numbers were compared across the three groups. Logistic regression was used to predict group membership by BSABS subscales; risk ratios were calculated to identify 'basic symptoms' which best discriminated between groups.
The prevalence of at least any one 'basic symptom' was 30.2% in GPS compared to 81% in NP and 96.5% in EOP. Correct classification of EOP when compared to GPS was high (94.0%) and lower when compared to NP (78.6%). Cognitive symptoms discriminated best between EOP and NP.
Alike other prodromal- and psychotic-like experiences, 'basic symptoms' are prevalent in the general adolescent population, yet at a lower rate compared to EOP and NP. The usage of 'at least one basic symptom' as a screening criterion for youth at risk of developing a psychotic disorder is not recommended in the general population or in unselected psychiatrically ill adolescents. However, particularly cognitive 'basic symptoms' may be a valuable criteria to be included in future 'at risk' studies in adolescents.
Biological Psychiatry 04/2009; 111(1-3):32-8. · 8.28 Impact Factor
