Objective:  To describe the development and validation of the Clinical Global Impression–Schizophrenia (CGI‐SCH) scale, designed to assess positive, negative, depressive and cognitive symptoms in schizophrenia. Method:  The CGI‐SCH scale was adapted from the CGI scale. Concurrent validity and sensitivity to change were assessed by comparison with the Positive and Negative Symptom Severity (PANSS) and Global Assessment of Functioning (GAF) scales. To evaluate inter‐rater reliability, all patients were assessed by two clinicians. Results:  Symptoms were assessed in 114 patients. Correlation coefficients between the CGI‐SCH and the GAF and PANSS scores were high (most above 0.75), and were highest for positive and negative symptoms. Reliability was substantial (intraclass correlation coefficient, ICC > 0.70) in all but one dimension (depressive dimension, ICC = 0.64). Conclusion:  The CGI‐SCH scale is a valid, reliable instrument to evaluate severity and treatment response in schizophrenia. Given its simplicity, brevity and clinical face validity, the scale is appropriate for use in observational studies and routine clinical practice.

Summary:Purpose: Spanish adaptation of the Quality of Life in Epilepsy Inventory .Methods: Internal consistency and construct validity of the Spanish translation of the QOLIE-31 were tested in 252 patients with epilepsy. Patients also were administered the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-28), and the Nottingham Health Profile (NHP). Two weeks after the first test, a subgroup of randomly selected patients were readministered the QOLIE-31 along with a new five-optiori question about change in health status. Patients reporting no change in health status were included in the study of temporal stability. Sensitivity to clinical change was assessed in 31 additional patients who had successfully undergone epilepsy surgery.Results: The QOLIE-31 was highly correlated with the GHQ-28 ( r = -0.63) and the NHP ( r = -0.69), demonstrating construct validity. Cronbach's alpha coefficient was 0.92, showing the items of the QOLIE-31 to be interdependent and homogeneous. For a 2-week test retest, both Pearson productmoment correlation and intraclass correlation coefficients were 0.90, indicating temporal stability. Sensitivity to clinical change was suggested by a significant mean difference between the global scores both before and after epilepsy surgery (-21 27, p i 0.0001 ; 95% CI, -28.08 to -15.66). The standardized response mean of the global score was 1.67, and the effect size was 1.35, both indicating large clinical change as a result of seizure relief.Conclusions: The similarity of psychometric properties between the English and the Spanish versions of the QOLIE-3

No abstract

Gender had a significant influence on social functioning in schizophrenia, even after adjusting for the other independent variables.

This study examined gender differences in the short-term (2 years) course of schizophrenia in a sample of 200 schizophrenic (DSM-IV criteria) outpatients (74 women and 126 men). Number and length of hospitalizations during the prospective follow-up were recorded. After 2 years, men were found to have more hospitalizations and longer stays than women. Among subjects who had at least one hospitalization (12 women and 38 men), men had greater length of hospitalization. In conclusion, schizophrenic women had a significantly better short-term outcome.