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Handwriting Analysis Indicates Spontaneous Dyskinesias in Neuroleptic Naïve Adolescents at High Risk for Psychosis

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Schizophrenia as a progressive brain disease.

N E M van Haren¹, W Cahn, H E Hulshoff Pol

¹Rudolf Magnus Institute of Neuroscience, Department of Psychiatry, University Medical Centre Utrecht, Heidelberglaan 100, Utrecht, The Netherlands. n.e.m.vanharen@umcutrecht.nl

European Psychiatry : the Journal of the Association of European Psychiatrists

|June 3, 2008

Summary

Schizophrenia is a progressive brain disease with abnormal brain volume. Research suggests genetic factors significantly influence these changes, with environmental factors also playing a role.

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Last Updated: Jul 4, 2026

Handwriting Analysis Indicates Spontaneous Dyskinesias in Neuroleptic Naïve Adolescents at High Risk for Psychosis

Handwriting Analysis Indicates Spontaneous Dyskinesias in Neuroleptic Naïve Adolescents at High Risk for Psychosis

Published on: November 21, 2013

Area of Science:

Neuroscience
Psychiatry
Genetics

Background:

Schizophrenia is linked to brain volume abnormalities.
Neuroimaging studies have investigated these changes since 1995.

Purpose of the Study:

To determine if brain volume abnormalities in schizophrenia are static or progressive.
To investigate the genetic and environmental influences on these abnormalities.
To explore brain volume as a phenotype for schizophrenia research.

Main Methods:

Longitudinal neuroimaging studies.
Twin and family studies.
Analysis of age-related brain tissue loss.

Main Results:

Schizophrenia appears to be a progressive brain disease with abnormal brain maturation in adulthood.
Brain volume abnormalities are heritable, observed in unaffected relatives.
Environmental factors, including illness outcome, influence brain volume, independent of medication.

Conclusions:

Schizophrenia is a progressive brain disease characterized by significant genetic influence on brain volume abnormalities.
Further research, including longitudinal twin analyses, is needed to understand gene-by-environment interactions in progressive brain changes.