Analysis of the cerebrospinal fluid may be used to detect cases of schizophrenia (02/06/06)
A study published recently shows that soon we may be able to detect brain disease before symptoms even begin, by examining the contents of the cerebrospinal fluid, the clear liquid present our brain and spinal cord. Changes in the levels of certain lipids, like cholesterol, and proteins in the cerebrospinal fluid may be linked to various brain conditions, including schizophrenia and depression.
Source: News-Medical.Net, Thursday, February 2, and Disease Markers, v. 22(1-2), p. 247-72, 2006
Read more in article at www.nes-medical.net
PubMed abstract

Brain imaging studies of the brain may reveal early signs of schizophrenia (03/19/05)
There is a decline in function in an area of the brain called the prefrontal cortex in high-risk individuals experiencing early symptoms of schizophrenia that may reflect biological changes that precede the onset of the illness. Brain imaging examinations may reveal these changes, a new study shows.
Source: Medical News Today, Thursday, March 17, and Archives of General Psychiatry, v. 62(3), p. 254-6, 2005
Read more in article at www.medicalnewstoday.com
PubMed abstract

Researchers say schizophrenia can be predicted long before symptoms develop (01/07/05)
Researchers at Edinburgh University in Scotland say schizophrenia can be predicted in high risk groups years before symptoms and psychosis are developed. The signs include social withdrawal, odd behaviour, and feelings of being disconnected from reality.
Source: BBC News, Wednesday, January 5, 2005
Read more in article at news.bbc.co.uk

New imaging test may be used to diagnose schizophrenia (05/01/04)
An American research team have developed a new method for diagnosing schizophrenia, which includes the identification of an abnormal pattern in an area of the brain that governs hearing. Abnormalities in the structure and function of the brain cortex are characteristic features of the brains in persons with schizophrenia, particularly in an area called the superior temporal gyrus (SRG). A reduction in size of the SRG may correlate with auditory hallucinations and of thought disturbances.
Source: EiurekAlert, Friday, April 23, 2004
Read more in article at www.eurekalert.org

New device may help solve mysteries around mental illness (11/17/03)
Researchers at University of Colorado in the US have developed a new device they call the Whole-Head MEG system. The system can be used to study and photograph a person's brain at work. The researchers hope the device will help answer many question about brain diseases like schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.
Source: Houston Chronicle, Saturday, November 15, 2003
Read more in article at www.chron.com

Modern techniques facilitate diagnosis of psychiatric disorders (08/15/03)
Psychiatric disorders are among the hardest to diagnose. Until fairly recently, diagnoses were still based entirely on the patient's own report of symptoms and the psychiatrist's observations of the patient's behavior. However, with the modern techniques that are being developed today, such as genetic testing and neuroimaging techniques, it is starting to get easier to diagnose and diistinguish psychiatric conditions like schizophrenia, autism, bipolar disorder and major depression.
Source: Scientific American, September, 2003
Read more in article at www.sciam.com

Protein levels may be used to differentiate schizophrenia and bipolar disorder (03/01/03)
It has been previously demonstrated that the elevels of a protein, apolipoprotein D (apoD), are elevated in certain brain regions in subjects with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder compared to controls. A current study has found evidence that the distriubution of ApoE elevation is different in schizophrenic and bipolar disorder patients. These differences may be used in the diagnosis to separate these disorders.
Source: Mol Psychiatry, vol. 8(2), p. 167-75, 2003
PubMed abstract

Changes in the brain may be used to predict psychosis (02/03/03)
A current study in medical journal The Lancet shows that some of the abnormalities in the gray matter of the brain that are associated with psychotic disorders may be observed before symptoms occur, whereas other anatomical changes are developed only once the symptoms start to show. These findings could be useful both for understanding the clinical course of the disease in psychotic disordes and for developing new methods for diagnosis.
Source: The Lancet, vol. 361(9354), p. 280-1
PubMed abstract

Heart rhythm measurements in the diagnosis of psychiatric illness (08/02/02)
Research has demonstrated abnormal heart rate patterns that are associated with depression, anxiety, panic disorder, and schizophrenia. The assessment of these patterns is a new methodology for documenting physiological dysregulation associated with psychiatric illness. This type of analysis may be a promising new method for analysis in psychiatric research and health care.
Source: Psychiatr Q, vol. 73(3), p. 195-203
PubMed abstract

MRI in the diagnosis of mental illness (01/31/02)
Magnetic resonance imaging - MRI - is an advanced imaging method to detect changes in for instance the brain's anatomy, metabolism, and blood flow. At Harvard University researchers are now working on a computerized method for interpreting brain MRI scans. The researchers hope the technique will make it simpler and cheaper for physicians to make an early diagnosis of neurodegenerative conditions like Alzheimer's disease and schizophrenia. To diagnose mental illness may thus soon be as simple as checking a patient't blood pressure.
Source: Health-Reuters, January 30, 2002
Read more in article on Yahoo! - Reuters

Childhood-onset schizophrenia may be confused with mood disorders (12/10/01)
There is an evident risk for confusing symptoms of psychic mood disorders with childhood-onset schizophrenia, according to child psychiatry experts at National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), Bethesda, USA.

As part of an investigation of childhood-onset schizophrenia (COS) children diagnosed with COS were referred to the research team in Bethesda. The experts however found that several of these children had received an incorrect diagnosis. To investigate this situation, the researchers studied 33 patients who had been re-diagnosed as suffering from of a mood disorder rather than schizophrenia. Diagnostic reliability study were performed, including reevaluation by three psychiatrists who were blind to the initial research diagnosis. Also, pilot follow-up data regarding current function and treatment status were obtained for a majority of the subjects.

Interrater reliability, reliability between raters and NIMH research diagnoses and agreement for patients with mood disorders were all excellent or good. Pilot follow-up data indicate that none of the subjects with a diagnosed mood disorder developed a clinical course resembling schizophrenia.

The authors conclude that: "Many of the patients referred to the NIMH COS study with clinical diagnoses of schizophrenia had psychotic mood disorders ..., and these research diagnoses were reliable. The diagnosis of COS is difficult and requires a time-consuming evaluation process.
Source: J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 2001 Oct;40(10):1190-6
Read an abstract of the article

Telling patients with schizophrenia their diagnosis (04/09/01)
Psychiatrist Robert A. Clafferty and coworkers have studied if psychiatrists themselves may contribute to the misunderstandings surrounding schizophrenia by avoiding discussion of the diagnosis with their patients. All consultant psychiatrists working in Scotland was contacted by using a postal questionnaire. Close to 250 responded. Almost everyone (95%) thought the consultant psychiatrist was the most appropriate person to tell a patient their diagnosis of schizophrenia. However, far from all psychiatrists reported doing so. In fact, 15% would not use the term "schizophrenia". The researchers found that a and a variety of confusing terminology was used.

The authors conclude that "greater openness by psychiatrists about the diagnosis of schizophrenia may be an essential first step in reducing stigma."
Source: Psychiatr. Bull. 2001 25: 336-339.
Read an abstract of the article

Schizophrenia linked to father's age (04/12/01)
According to a recently published study, older fathers are more likely to have children with predisposal for schizophrenia. The study, which is published in the April issue of Archives of General Psychiatry, shows that fathers aged 50 or older are almost three times more likely to have a child with schizophrenia. This supports previous studies demonstrating a link between older fathers and other gene-related diseases.
Read more:
Full text on Archives of General Psychiatry website
Article on Yahoo! - Reuters (04/12/01)
Article on Yahoo! - AP (04/12/01)
Article on BBC News (04/12/01)

Possible test for schizophrenia (01/29/01)
In the current issue of BMJ (vol 322, p192), Judy Siegel-Itzkovich reports from Jerusalem:
"Israeli researchers may have found a way to diagnose schizophrenia by analysing white blood cells for signs of a chemical that is overactive in patients with the psychiatric condition. Psychiatrists may be able to give patients a simple blood test to determine at an early stage whether a patient has the disorder instead of observing behaviour for at least six months before diagnosing and treating it. The blood test, which has been patented but is not likely to be commercially available for several years, was proposed and tried on patients by Professor Sara Fuchs of the immunology department of the Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot and by graduate student Tal Ilani."
Read the news report in BMJ
Read an abstract of the article (published in PNAS 2001;98:625-8)

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