Backward masking as a measure of slow processing in schizophrenia spectrum disorders.

Saccuzzo, Dennis P.; Schubert, Donald L.

doi:10.1037//0021-843x.90.4.305

Cited by 35 publications

References 28 publications

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Functional Neuroanatomy of Visual Masking Deficits in Schizophrenia

Green¹,

Lee²,

Cohen³

et al. 2009

Arch Gen Psychiatry

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Context Visual masking procedures assess the earliest stages of visual processing. Patients with schizophrenia reliably show deficits on visual masking, and these procedures have been used to explore vulnerability to schizophrenia, probe underlying neural circuits, and help to explain functional outcome. Objective The goal of the current study was to identify and compare regional brain activity associated with one form of visual masking (i.e. backward masking) in schizophrenia patients and healthy controls. Design, Setting, and Participants Nineteen patients with schizophrenia and 19 healthy control subjects were recruited from the VA Greater Los Angles Healthcare System and local communities. Subjects received functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scans. While in the scanner, subjects performed a backward masking task, and were given three functional localizer activation scans to identify early visual processing regions of interest (ROIs). Main Outcome Measures The main outcome measure was the magnitude of the fMRI signal during backward masking. Results Two ROIs (lateral occipital complex (LO), and motion sensitive area, hMT+) showed sensitivity to the effects of masking, meaning that signal in these areas increased as the target became more visible. Patients had lower activation than controls in LO across all levels of visibility, but did not differ in other visual processing ROIs. Using whole brain analyses, we also identified areas outside the ROIs that were sensitive to masking effects (including bilateral inferior parietal lobe and thalamus), but groups did not differ in signal magnitude in these areas. Conclusions The study results support a key role in LO for visual masking, consistent with previous studies in healthy controls. The current results indicate that patients fail to activate LO to the same extent as controls during visual processing regardless of stimulus visibility, suggesting a neural basis for the visual masking deficit, and possibly other visual integration deficits, in schizophrenia.

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Functional Neuroanatomy of Visual Masking Deficits in Schizophrenia

Green¹,

Lee²,

Cohen³

et al. 2009

Arch Gen Psychiatry

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Backward Masking in Schizophrenia and Mania

Green

Nuechterlein

Mintz

1994

Arch Gen Psychiatry

195

118

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Schizophrenic patients have abnormalities at least with interruptive mechanisms. The results suggest that deficits on masking procedures are not entirely specific to schizophrenia because comparable masking deficits were found in manic inpatients with chronic disease. The current study addresses the neuropsychological mechanisms of the masking deficit. The next step will be to investigate the contributions of two distinct neuroanatomical visual pathways to the masking abnormality in schizophrenia.

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