Pd. Harvey et al., SYMPTOM SEVERITY AND COGNITIVE IMPAIRMENT IN CHRONICALLY HOSPITALIZEDGERIATRIC-PATIENTS WITH AFFECTIVE-DISORDERS, British Journal of Psychiatry, 170, 1997, pp. 369-374
Background Affective disorders typically have a better outcome than sc
hizophrenia, although recent evidence suggests that some patients with
affective disorder have a relatively poor outcome, with cognitive imp
airments and persistent symptomatology. Method Fifty chronically hospi
talised geriatric patients with mood disorders (major depression or bi
polar disorder) were compared on the clinical symptoms and aspects of
cognitive impairment with 308 geriatric schizophrenic patients who wer
e hospitalised at the same institution. The two samples did not differ
in current age or in premorbid education level, but the affective pat
ients had a later age of onset and more females in the sample. Results
There were no overall differences in cognitive functioning between th
e groups, although the clinical symptom profiles resembled those seen
in better outcome patients. Conclusions Cognitive impairment is presen
t in poor-outcome patients with affective disorders as well as schizop
hrenia, suggesting that cognitive impairments predict poor outcome acr
oss psychiatric disorders and not just in schizophrenia.