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Nicotine use in schizophrenia: the self medication hypotheses
1Department of Psychology, Institute of Psychiatry, London SE5 8AF, UK. v.kumari@iop.kcl.ac.uk
Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews
|June 21, 2005
Summary
Individuals with schizophrenia smoke at higher rates, potentially to self-medicate cognitive deficits. Nicotine
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Psychiatry
- Addiction Research
Background:
- Elevated smoking rates in schizophrenia patients (2-4x general population).
- Schizophrenia patients may prefer stronger cigarettes and extract more nicotine.
- Theories suggest smoking behavior may be a form of self-medication.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review explanations for high smoking rates in schizophrenia.
- To emphasize theories linking smoking to sensory gating and cognitive deficits.
- To explore the self-medication hypothesis in schizophrenia smoking behavior.
Main Methods:
- Literature review and theoretical overview.
- Analysis of existing research on nicotine, schizophrenia, and smoking.
- Focus on sensory gating and cognitive deficit theories.
Main Results:
- Smoking is significantly more prevalent in schizophrenia.
- Nicotine's effects on cognitive function are a key area of interest.
- Sensory gating and cognitive deficits are strongly implicated in self-medication theories.
Conclusions:
- Elevated smoking in schizophrenia may be linked to underlying neurobiological factors.
- The self-medication hypothesis, particularly via cognitive enhancement, is a prominent explanation.
- Further research is needed to fully understand the nicotine-schizophrenia relationship.