Niacin Skin Test May Identify Some Patients With Schizophrenia

Researchers may be one step closer to determining how a topical niacin test —which rapidly causes the skin to flush—might be used to objectively identify some patients with schizophrenia, according to astudy published inSchizophrenia Bulletin. Previous studies have observed a link between a diminished niacin response and schizophrenia, but due to small sample sizes it has been difficult to pinpoint a quantitative cutoff that can accurately distinguish patients. In the current study, Chunling Wan, Ph.D., of Shanghai Jiao Tong University in China and colleagues calculated the degree of inflammatory response to topical niacin that can objectively identify some patients with schizophrenia. The study included 163 subjects with schizophrenia, 63 subjects with a mood disorder (depression, mania, or bipolar disorder), and 63 healthy controls from the Chinese Han population. All the participants received a comprehensive skin test that involved applications of niacin at four concentrations (0.1, 0.01, 0.001, and 0.0001 M) on the forearm. Each participant was given a score based on the skin flush response at 5, 10, 15, and 20 minutes after application.The authors observed that overall, the schizophrenia group showed both delayed and decreased skin flush reactions after niacin stimulation, while the group with mood disorders exhibited delayed but not decreased flushing relative to controls.After calculating various parameters, the study authors found that patients who had a...
Source: Psychiatr News - Category: Psychiatry Tags: arachidonic acid niacin schizophrenia schizophrenia diagnosis skin reaction Source Type: research