IDENTIFICATION OF SUBTYPES OF SCHIZOPHREN IC-PATIENTS BY A TYPOLOGICAL ANALYSIS

The existence of two subtypes of schizophrenia (positive and negative) is well established. The evidence in favour of other subtypes, in par ticular a disorganized subtype, is still the subject of some debate. T herefore, the aim of the study was to investigate the possibility of f urther subtypes of schizophrenia by applying a Ward's method of cluste r analysis with the Positive And Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) score s in 138 schizophrenic patients. The results from the cluster analysis suggested the existence of at least four sub-types of schizophrenia, positive, negative, mixed and disorganized. Evidence for the validity of these subtypes was provided by the observed differences between the clusters on a number of clinical characteristics. Thus, the negative- positive dichotomy in schizophrenia is an oversimplification, and the existence of a more complex structure needs to be taken into account i n future research.