Is a schizo-obsessive subtype associated with cognitive impairment? Results from a large cross-sectional study in patients with psychosis and their unaffected relatives

J Nerv Ment Dis. 2013 Jan;201(1):30-5. doi: 10.1097/NMD.0b013e31827ab2b2.

Abstract

The current study investigated whether candidate cognitive endophenotypes may be used to validate a schizo-obsessive subtype. Using within-subject random effect regression analyses and cross-trait cross-relative analyses, we evaluated the association between obsessive-compulsive symptoms (OCSs) and cognitive performance in 984 patients with nonaffective psychosis (22.5% with OCSs), 973 unaffected siblings (7.7% with OCSs), 851 parents (4.2% with OCSs), and 573 controls (4.5% with OCSs). No significant within-subject associations between OCSs and cognitive functioning were found for patients and siblings. Severity of OCSs was associated with worse set-shifting ability in parents and worse processing speed in controls, but effect sizes were small (0.10 and 0.05 respectively). Cross-trait cross-relative analyses yielded no significant results. Contrary to our expectations, neither within-subject analyses nor cross-relative analyses yielded a clear association between OCSs and cognitive performance. Results do not support a schizo-obsessive subtype associated with cognitive impairment.

Publication types

  • Comparative Study
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Cognition Disorders / epidemiology
  • Cognition Disorders / physiopathology*
  • Comorbidity
  • Cross-Sectional Studies
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Neuropsychological Tests
  • Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder / classification
  • Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder / epidemiology
  • Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder / physiopathology*
  • Psychiatric Status Rating Scales
  • Psychotic Disorders / classification
  • Psychotic Disorders / epidemiology
  • Psychotic Disorders / physiopathology*
  • Severity of Illness Index
  • Wechsler Scales