Cognitive remediation improves cognition and good cognitive performance increases time to relapse – results of a 5 year catamnestic study in schizophrenia patients

BMC Psychiatry

Goeran Hajak¹  Wilfried Günther¹  Bernd Gallhofer²  Stefan Lautenbacher³  Katharina Hoesl¹  Michael Landgrebe¹  Wolfgang Trapp¹ 

[1] Department of Psychiatry, Sozialstiftung Bamberg, St-.Getreu-Straße 14-18, Bamberg, 96049, Germany;Centre for Psychiatry, Justus Liebig University School of Medicine Gießen, Am Steg 22, Gießen, 35392, Germany;Department of Physiological Psychology, Otto-Friedrich University Bamberg, Markusplatz 3, Bamberg, 96045, Germany

关键词: Clinical course;    Prediction;    Outcome;    Cognitive remediation;    Cognition;    Schizophrenia;   

Others  :  1124009
DOI  :  10.1186/1471-244X-13-184

 received in 2012-09-13, accepted in 2013-06-28,  发布年份 2013

【 摘 要 】

Background

Cognitive deficits are stable features of schizophrenia that are linked to functional outcome. Cognitive remediation approaches have been proven successful in ameliorating these deficits, although effect sizes vary considerably. Whether cognitive deficits are serious predictors of clinical outcome is less clear.

Methods

Sixty patients suffering from schizophrenia were included in our sample, thirty of them received computer-assisted cognitive training, and thirty received occupational therapy. For a subsample of 55 patients, who could be traced over a period of five years after the end of the cognitive remediation intervention, time until first relapse and time in psychosis were determined retrospectively from their medical records.

Results

Cognitive remediation significantly improved problem solving, memory and attention with high effect sizes. Employment status, a post test verbal memory performance measure and a measure of executive functioning outperformed all other measures in the prediction of time to relapse, while allocation to treatment group outperformed all other variables in the prediction of both cognitive measures.

Conclusions

Cognitive remediation of neurocognitive deficits thus makes sense in a twofold fashion: It enhances cognition directly and positively acts on clinical course indirectly via improved neurocognition.

Trial registration

German Clinical Trials Register: DRKS00004880

【 授权许可】

   
2013 Trapp et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.

【 图 表 】

Figure 1.

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