Binocular depth inversion as a paradigm of reduced visual information processing in prodromal state, antipsychotic-naïve and treated schizophrenia.

Abstract

The binocular depth inversion illusion test (BDII) represents a sensitive measure of impaired visual information processing that manifests in various experimental and naturally occurring psychotic states. This study explores impairment of visual processing in different major psychiatric diseases investigating 313 subjects, suffering of either an initial prodromal state of psychosis (IPS) or a first-episode, antipsychotic-naïve paranoid schizophrenia (SZ-N) as well as short-term antipsychotically treated schizophrenia (SZ-T), major depression (MDD), bipolar disorder (BD), dementia (D), and healthy controls (HC). Patients suffering from either IPS, SZ-N or a SZ-T showed significantly higher scores of BDII compared to HC, indicating that visual processing is already disturbed at an early state of the disease. For MDD, BD and D no statistically significant difference was found compared to HC. As the identification of individuals at high risk for developing schizophrenia relies on rating scales assessing subtle, pre-psychotic psychopathology, it would be of interest to have more diagnostic criteria available, testing, e.g. cognitive and perceptual impairment. We therefore analysed the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve, testing prodromal cases versus a clinically relevant sample of non-psychotic patients and controls, which included HC as well as the groups of patients suffering from MDD, BD or D revealing a AUC of 0.70. Thus, the BDII may be useful as an additional neuropsychological test for assessment of patients at high risk for developing schizophrenia.

• Authors: Dagmar Koethe, Laura Kranaster, Carolin Hoyer, Sonja Gross, Miriam A Neatby, Frauke Schultze-Lutter, Stephan Ruhrmann, Joachim Klosterkötter, Martin Hellmich, F Markus Leweke
• Journal: European archives of psychiatry and clinical neuroscience (Eur Arch Psychiatry Clin Neurosci) Vol. 259 Issue 4 Pg. 195-202 (Jun 2009) ISSN: 1433-8491 [Electronic] Germany
• PMID: 19165523 (Publication Type: Comparative Study, Journal Article, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't)

Chemical References

• Antipsychotic Agents

Topics

• Adult
• Aged
• Antipsychotic Agents (therapeutic use)
• Bipolar Disorder (diagnosis, drug therapy, physiopathology)
• Dementia (diagnosis, drug therapy, physiopathology)
• Depressive Disorder, Major (diagnosis, drug therapy, physiopathology)
• Depth Perception
• Female
• Humans
• Male
• Middle Aged
• Neuropsychological Tests
• Photic Stimulation (methods)
• Psychiatric Status Rating Scales
• Schizophrenia (diagnosis, drug therapy, physiopathology)
• Schizophrenia, Paranoid (diagnosis, drug therapy, physiopathology)
• Vision Disparity
• Vision, Binocular