Schizophrenia in 2020: Trends in diagnosis and therapy

Abstract

Schizophrenia research is providing an increasing number of studies and important insights into the condition's etiopathogenesis based on genetic, neuropsychological and cranial neuroimaging studies. However, research progress has not yet led to the incorporation of such findings into the revised classification criteria of mental disorders or everyday clinical practice. By 2020, schizophrenia will most likely still be a clinically defined primary psychotic disorder. While there is some hope that treatment will be improved with new antipsychotic drugs, drugs addressing negative symptoms, more refined psychotherapy approaches and the introduction of new treatment modalities like transcranial magnetic stimulation, an additional hope is to improve early detection and prevention. As the results of new research into the etiopathogenesis of schizophrenia are promising to improve diagnosis, classification and therapy in the future, a picture of complex brain dysfunction is currently emerging requiring sophisticated mathematical methods of analysis. The imminent clinical challenge will be to develop comprehensive diagnostic and treatment modules individually tailored to the time‐variable needs of patients and their families.

Comparison of the adolescent and adult mouse prefrontal cortex proteome

“…Schizophrenia is a psychotic disorder characterized by significant impairments in cognition, hallucinations and delusions, and social withdrawal and mood disturbances [61] that is usually diagnosed during adolescence [62]. A significant neurobiological component of schizophrenia appears to be alterations in cortical gray matter; schizophrenia patients present with both faster reductions in cortical gray matter during adolescence [63] and greater total volume reductions in the prefrontal cortex [64], which may predate symptom onset [65].…”

The Relationship between Cytokines and Verbal Memory in Individuals with Schizophrenia and Their Unaffected Siblings

“…Further studies are still necessary to better understand the pathophysiology and neuropsychology mechanisms in SZ. The increased knowledge in this field might provide a background for the development of enhanced psychological and psychiatric interventions aiming at cognitive improvement in individuals with this chronic debilitating disease [44]. …”

Effect of Clozapine on DNA Methylation in Peripheral Leukocytes from Patients with Treatment-Resistant Schizophrenia

“…Schizophrenia (SCZ) is a mental disorder characterized by symptoms that include delusions, hallucinations, and disorganized speech [1]. Approximately, 30% of SCZ patients are treatment-resistant [2], and the atypical antipsychotic clozapine has become the treatment of choice in this setting [3,4].…”