CONSENSUS ON MINIMAL CRITERIA OF CLINICAL AND NEUROPATHOLOGICAL DIAGNOSIS OF SCHIZOPHRENIA AND AFFECTIVE-DISORDERS FOR POST-MORTEM RESEARCH- REPORT FROM THE EUROPEAN DEMENTIA AND SCHIZOPHRENIA NETWORK (BIOMED-I)

The sophisticated analysis of and growing information on the human bra in requires that acquisition, dissection, storage and distribution of rare material are managed in a professional way. In this publication w e present the consensus of the European work group > European Dementia and Schizophrenia Network <, granted by the BIOMED I project of the E U, on minimal neuropathological and clinical requirements to include b rains of patients with schizophrenia and affective disorders in post m ortem studies. The description of clinical prerequisites in different EU countries and institutions is followed by a consensus on tissue han dling, a consensus on minimal neuropathological criteria and a consens us on minimal clinical diagnostic criteria including clinical vignette , family, social, educational/professional and general medical histori es, general physical history including neurostatus, neurological, psyc hiatric, medication and general pathological histories, psychostatus, laboratory tests and a history provided by family/health care giver qu estionaire. This publication should give help to interconnect differen t European brain bank centers on a basis of standarized protocols.