Schizophrenia

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Symptoms	Surgery	Test	Special Topic

Schizophrenia

Overview

Symptoms

Treatment

Prevention

Schizophrenia

Symptoms:

Catatonic type:

Motor disturbances
Stupor
Negativism
Rigidity
Agitation
Inability to take care of personal needs
Decreased sensitivity to painful stimulus

Paranoid type:

Delusional thoughts of persecution or of a grandiose nature
Anxiety
Anger
Violence
Argumentativeness

Disorganized type:

Incoherence (not understandable)
Regressive behavior
Flat affect
Delusions
Hallucinations
Inappropriate laughter
Repetitive mannerisms
Social withdrawal

Undifferentiated type: Patient may have symptoms of more than one subtype of schizophrenia.

Residual type: Prominent symptoms of the illness have abated, but some features - such as hallucinations and flat affect - may remain.

Signs and tests:

Because other diseases can also cause symptoms of psychosis, psychiatrists should make the final diagnosis. The diagnosis is made based on a thorough psychiatric interview of the person and family members. As yet, there are no defining medical tests for schizophrenia. The following factors may suggest a schizophrenia diagnosis, but do not confirm it:

Developmental background
Genetic and family history
Changes from level of functioning prior to illness
Course of illness and duration of symptoms
Response to pharmacological therapy

CT scans of the head and other imaging techniques may identify some changes associated with schizophrenia in the research literature and may rule out other neurophysiological disorders.

References:

Rakel RE. Textbook of Family Practice. 6th ed. Philadelphia, Pa: WB Saunders; 2005:115-124.

Marx J. Rosen’s Emergency Medicine: Concepts and Clinical Practice. 5th ed. St. Louis, Mo: Mosby; 2002:1541-1548.

Review Date: 5/8/2006
Reviewed By: Paul Ballas, D.O., Department of Psychiatry, Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, Philadelphia, PA. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.

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