Symptomatic remission predictors in schizophrenia: association with cognitive functions, positive and negative symptoms, treatment adherence and other clinical variables

Objective: Schizophrenia is a severe mental disorder that negatively effects to life quality and increases morbidity and mortality. In the course of disease, plenty of symptoms may occur, clinical course and severity of disease vary from person to person. Patients' functioning and symptoms are improved in symptomatic remission status, hence symptomatic remission is one of the most important treatment goal in schizophrenia. Methods: Amongst the outpatient clinic, 122 patients were selected who evaluated in respect to clinical and cognitive features at baseline. After 10 years follow-up period, 34 patients re-evaluated in respect to sociodemographic, clinical and cognitive features and association with symptomatic remission status. Findings: A total of 34 patients were interviewed in this study. According to RSWG criterion, 17 of patients (%50.0) were in symptomatic remission. Actual Clinical Global Impressive Scale (CGI), Positive and Negative Symptom Scale (PANSS), Quality of Life Scale (QLS), Scale to Assess Unawareness of Mental Disorder, Trail-Making Test A and B (TMT-A, TMT-B), Digit Symbol Substition Test (DSST), Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST) total errors, Digit Span Test (DST) backward, Auditory Consonant Trigrams Test (ACT), Stroop Color and Word Test (SCWT) interference and interference error scores were related to actual remission status. In addition, baseline CGI, PANSS negative subscale (PANSS - ), Calgary Depression Scale for Schizophrenia (CDSS), Quality of Life Scale (QLS), Scale to Assess Unawareness of Mental Disorder, Trail-Making Test A and B (TMT-A, TMT-B), Digit Symbol Substition Test (DSST) and WCST category scores. were also found that related to actual symptomatic remission status. Conclusion: Both baseline and after 10 years follow-up, severity of ilness, negative symptoms, insight and processing speed may be consistent predictors of symptomatic remission. Despite lack of baseline evaluation, education status, treatment adherence, baseline remission status and functionality may related to long term symptomatic remission status. Keywords: Schizophrenia, cognitive functions, symptomatic remission.