PSYCHONEUROENDOCRINOLOGY OF SCHIZOPHRENIA

The study of psychoneuroendocrinology of schizophrenia has yielded an extensive but inconclusive body of data, investigations to date have b een limited by several factors, including the confounding effects of n euroleptic drugs, methodological limitations, and lack of appreciation for the heterogeneity of the illness. Previously, the focus of resear ch has been on the measurement of anterior pituitary hormones, guided by the assumptions mat these hormones are regulated by the central ner vous system (CNS) to a significant degree and that the unique anatomic relationship uf the pituitary gland to the hypothalamus and the CNS i s potentially relevant. Patients with schizophrenia do appear to have distinct endocrinologic profiles. However, although the hormonal diffe rences between patients with schizophrenia and the general population arrear to be subtle in magnitude. Nonetheless, investigation, and the exploration of the possible effect of gonadal and posterior pituitary hormones merits particular attention.