Minor physical anomalies in schizophrenia and bipolar affective disorder

Objective. The prevalence of minor physical anomalies (MPAs) (prenatal erro rs of morphogenesis) was evaluated in patients with schizophrenia and bipol ar affective disorder. Method. A new modification of the Waldrop-scale was used to detect the pres ence or absence of 57 MPAs in 30 patients with schizophrenia, 30 with bipol ar disorder, and in 30 matched normal controls. Results. Patients with schizophrenia compared to normal controls had signif icantly higher rates of three minor malformations (furrowed tongue, flat oc ciput, primitive shape of ears) and those of one phenogenetic variant (wide distance between toes 1 and 2), and they also had a significantly higher r ate of one minor malformation (primitive shape of ears), as compared to pat ients with bipolar disorder. In patients with bipolar disorder, furrowed to ngue was significantly more common than in controls. Conclusions. These results support an 'early' neuro-developmental model of schizophrenia. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.