ARE SCHIZOPHRENIC MEN AT HIGHER RISK FOR DEVELOPMENTAL DEFICITS THAN SCHIZOPHRENIC WOMEN - IMPLICATIONS FOR ADULT NEUROPSYCHOLOGICAL FUNCTIONS

This study tested the hypothesis that schizophrenic men would be at a greater risk than schizophrenic women for exhibiting a history of deve lopmental problems in childhood and would exhibit more neuropsychologi cal deficits as adults. The study was a secondary analysis of data tha t were collected in 1981-83. The sample consisted of 49 DSM-III schizo phrenic patients (57% male/ 43% female), who were generally in the ear ly stages of the disorder. All subjects received a neurodevelopmental and clinical/diagnostic interview and a neuropsychological battery of tests, including measures of intelligence, abstract reasoning, memory, sustained attention, executive function, language skills, and motor a bility. Latent class analysis was used to identify gender differences in subclasses of schizophrenia. The groups were then compared on neuro psychological function. Results indicated that schizophrenics with his tories of early developmental problems exhibited significantly more ne uropsychological dysfunction as adults than did other schizophrenics, and they were more likely to be men. Impairment in this group was evid ent in the areas of verbal ability, attention, abstraction, motor func tion, and verbal and nonverbal learning and memory, with verbal tasks being relatively more impaired.