Pre-onset sub-threshold psychotic symptoms and cortical organization in the first episode of psychosis

Publication date: Available online 28 January 2020Source: Progress in Neuro-Psychopharmacology and Biological PsychiatryAuthor(s): R.J. Rosengard, C. Makowski, M. Chakravarty, A.K. Malla, R. Joober, J.L. Shah, M. LepageAbstractIndividuals with sub-threshold psychotic symptoms (STPS) are considered at clinical high risk for psychosis (CHR). Imaging studies comparing CHR and patients shortly after a first episode of psychosis (FEP) support progressive cortical thinning by illness stage. However, at least 30% of FEP patients deny pre-onset STPS, suggesting no history of CHR. This calls into question the generalizability of previous imaging findings. To better understand the physiology of early psychosis symptomology, we investigated the relationship between pre-onset STPS and cortical thickness (CT) among FEP patients, examining regional CT and structural covariance (SC). Patients (N = 93) were recruited from PEPP-Montreal, a FEP clinic at the Douglas Mental Health University Institute. The Circumstances of Onset and Relapse Schedule was administered to retrospectively identify patients who recalled at least one of nine expert-selected STPS prior to their FEP (STPS+, N = 67) and to identify those who did not (STPS-, N = 26). Age and sex-matched healthy controls (HC) were recruited (N = 84) for comparison. Participants were scanned between one and three times over the course of two years. CT values of 320 scans (143 HC, 123 STPS+, 54 STPS-) that passed quality con...
Source: Progress in Neuro Psychopharmacology and Biological Psychiatry - Category: Psychiatry Source Type: research