Findings significant with respect to short- and medium-term outcome in schizophrenia--a preliminary report

1. The objective of the study was to determine the relationship of psychopathological, psychobiological, and clinical psychological variables to short- and medium-term outcome in schizophrenia. 2. The predictive power of several variables described as potential predictors in the literature were evaluated. To these we added clinical psychological variables; most of these had never been examined in a prospective study. 3. The sample consisted of a total of 45 patients. None of the patients was on medication and all were tested shortly after admission to the hospital. The following factors were regarded as outcome criteria: change in the GAS-score four weeks after admission, length of hospitalization after index admission, relapse nine months after admission and two years after discharge. 4. We found that the psychobiological data set as well as the clinical psychological data set had the highest predictive power with respect to short- and medium-term outcome. 5. An analysis of the single variables within the clinical psychological data set revealed that the patients with attention disorder and a low Stimulus Barrier Function (Bellak-scale) responded better to a four-week Haloperidol treatment. Patients with a low Stimulus Barrier Function at admission had, in comparison to this, a poor outcome after two years (relapse). (No patient was taking drugs regularly at this time.) The expressed emotion of the relative approached only significance (p less than .07) as a factor to be connected with relapse after two years. 6. As psychological factors the ANS activity and the CT were measured. The latter in order to evaluate possible atrophic alterations in the brain. 7. Higher activity of the ANS was found in those patients who were hospitalized for a longer period. Slight atrophic alterations of the brain (CT scan) were related to poor outcome after two years (relapse). 8. No significant relationship was found between the psychopathological state at admission and short- or medium-term course of the illness. 9. The findings are interpreted as showing the importance of psychobiological as well as clinical psychological variables in order to uncover the factors related to the heterogeneous course of the schizophrenic illness.