Tablet-Based Cognitive and Eye Movement Measures as Accessible Tools for Schizophrenia Assessment: Multisite...

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Psychiatry
• Biomarkers

Background:

• Schizophrenia involves cognitive and neurobiological alterations, with cognitive function and eye movement impairments as potential biomarkers.
• Current cognitive assessment methods for schizophrenia require specialized expertise, and simplified tools are lacking.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate a novel tablet-based platform for classifying schizophrenia using combined cognitive and eye movement measures.
• To assess the diagnostic efficacy of simplified, accessible tools for schizophrenia assessment.

Main Methods:

• A multi-site study involving 44 schizophrenia patients, 67 healthy controls, and 41 patients with other psychiatric diagnoses.
• Utilized a 12.9-inch iPad Pro for a free-viewing eye movement task and two cognitive assessment tools (Codebreaker and CognitiveFunctionTest app).
• Employed comparative group and logistic regression analyses to determine diagnostic accuracy.

Main Results:

• Significant differences in cognitive and eye movement measures were observed between schizophrenia patients and healthy controls (P<.001).
• The Codebreaker task achieved high classification effectiveness (AUC=0.90); combining measures improved accuracy (AUC=0.94).
• Cognitive measures distinguished schizophrenia from healthy controls, while eye movement measures differentiated schizophrenia from other psychiatric conditions.

Conclusions:

• A tablet-based application is feasible and effective for assessing cognitive function and eye movements in schizophrenia patients.
• Results suggest tablet-based assessments offer simple, accessible evaluation tools for potential clinical implementation.
• This approach may aid in the early detection and management of schizophrenia.