SZ : symptoms and features

Question 1

SZ

Answer 1

DSM-5 requires at least 2 of the 4 key symptoms when diagnosing sz, 1 must be delusions, hallucinations or disorganised thought. Must have 1 month of active symptoms and 6 months disturbance to every day functioning

ICD-10 - less focus on dysfunction and 6 months disturbance nor necessary

Question 2

Delusions

Answer 2

‘Fixed beliefs’ even in light of conflicting evidence:

Grandiose - you believe you are exceptional
Referential- You believe environmental cues have personal meaning
Persecutory- You believe someone Is trying to harm you

Question 3

Hallucination

Answer 3

Involuntary viviv perceptual experiences that occur in absence of external stimuli :

Visual, Somatosensory (bodily feelings), Olfactory (smell), Auditory

Auditory is most common in SZ (hearing voices distinct from own)

Question 4

Thought insertion

Answer 4

Believing your thoughts do not belong to you and have been implanted by an external source. Experience blurring between self and others

Question 5

Disorganised thought

Answer 5

Inferred from speech- derailment, Tangents

Difficulty to follow the persons train of thought
Word salad- stringing random words together in a sentence
Neologism- Merging words together to create new ones

Question 6

Features of SZ

Answer 6

Lifetime prevalence of 0.3- 0.7%

Onset slightly earlier in males- (early-to mid-twenties) compared to women- (late twenties) Prognosis is worse in men

Prognosis is variable and hard to predict- Most experience chronic episodes throughout their lives, a minority fully recover, some show progressive deterioration. Positive symptoms reduce over time but negative symptoms often remain