Costs of treatment and outcome measures in schizophrenia

Out of a sample of 138 patients with diagnosis of schizophrenia or schizo-a ffective disorder (ICD-10) who where First hospitalized between 1990 and 19 93, 31 patients rehospitalized between 1994 and 1996 were prospectively inv estigated (t1, index admission: t2, one-year-follow-up). Psychopathology wa s recorded by the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS), social disa bility by the German version of the Disability Assessment Schedule (DAS-M). The total costs of treatment over the past year were estimated including a ll outpatient services used within the last year. The cost of treatment amounted on average to 37700 DM/year in the year befo re index admission and 55900 DM/year in the following year (including index admission). The costs were highly correlated with social disability (t2) ( p < .0001) and moderately correlated with negative symptoms (t1, t2) (p < . 05), but not with positive or general symptoms. Negative symptoms were high ly correlated with social disability (t1, t2) (p < .01), positive and gener al symptoms only moderately (t2) (p < .05). The results support the assumpt ion that the inpatient and outpatient psychiatric care system meets the nee ds of patients.