Depressive symptoms in acute schizophrenic hospitalized patients

Thirty-four newly admitted patients who met the Research Diagnostic Criteria for schizophrenia were assessed on admission and in their 8th week of hospitalization. The data were obtained using the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS), the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D), and the Extrapyramidal Involvement Rating Scale (EPRS). A significant reduction in BPRS scores was observed on Week 8 scores compared with baseline scores (p less than .001); however, no significant difference could be found between baseline and Week 8 HAM-D scores. In addition, no significant correlation between the HAM-D scores and the EPRS scores was seen. Depressive symptoms appear to be present during the acute phase of schizophrenic psychosis and do not remit as rapidly as the psychotic symptoms.