Response programming in patients with schizophrenia: a kinematic analysis

Schizophrenia may involve disturbed subcortical mechanisms or anomalous functional asymmetries. We therefore examined any anomalies of functional asymmetry in a kinematic analysis of a cued sequential movement task previously found to be sensitive to basal ganglia dysfunction. Twenty patients with schizophrenia and 20 matched controls used preferred or non-preferred hand to connect a series of targets on a WACOM SD420 graphics tablet, in response to the pattern of illumination of light emitting diodes (LEDs). Movements were to be initiated with or without an external cue as to target location. Patients with schizophrenia exhibited relatively normal functional asymmetries, but had programming deficits, taking longer to initiate (i.e. self generate) movements in the absence of an external cue. The movements of patients with schizophrenia were more variable and less efficient, resembling those seen in Huntington's disease. Results supported a hypothesis of disturbance at some level in fronto-subcortical circuitry in schizophrenia.