SEX-DIFFERENCES IN NEUROPSYCHOLOGICAL FUNCTIONING AMONG SCHIZOPHRENIC-PATIENTS

Objective: The view of schizophrenic men as having poorer premorbid de velopment, earlier age at onset, and worse outcome than schizophrenic women predicts greater neuropsychological impairment in the former tha n the latter. The authors examined in detail neuropsychological functi oning in a large group of schizophrenic patients and a healthy compari son group. Method: Neuropsychological functioning in 132 male and 63 f emale patients with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder was exte nsively studied and compared with that of 99 (40 male, 59 female) heal thy individuals. Results: As expected, the schizophrenic patients as a group were pervasively and significantly more impaired than the compa rison group. Within schizophrenia, in contrast to the prediction, wome n performed significantly more poorly than men in verbal memory, spati al memory, adn visual processing. Female schizophrenic patients also h ad significantly poorer right than left hemisphere performance, wherea s male schizophrenic patients had identical scores for right and left hemisphere impairment. Conclusions: The findings are consistent with t he hypothesis that schizophrenia among women may be partially understo od as a right hemisphere dysfunction. Sampling, diagnostic and epidemi ologic factors may have affected the results.