BLINK RATE IN CHILDHOOD-ONSET SCHIZOPHRENIA - COMPARISON WITH NORMAL AND ATTENTION-DEFICIT HYPERACTIVITY DISORDER CONTROLS

Several lines of evidence have implicated central dopaminergic pathway s in the modulation of blink rate. In the present study, blink rare du ring smooth pursuit was examined in 17 children with childhood-onset s chizophrenia, on and off of clozapine, and compared to that of age-mat ched normal children and unmedicated children with attention-deficit h yperactivity disorder (ADHD). As has been observed in adolescent and a dult schizophrenics, blink rate was significantly higher in schizophre nic children relative to normal and ADHD controls, Within the schizoph renic group, blink rate did not significantly change with the introduc tion of clozapine and was not related to clinical variables, Blink rat e was positively correlated with deterioration in smooth pursuit in no rmal subjects. (C) 1996 Society of Biological Psychiatry