Symptoms and features Flashcards
what’s a feature
A feature is something like age of onset, how prevalent the disorder is, who it affects etc.
what’s a symptom
A symptom is something that the person experiences.
likelihood of developing SZ
0.3-0.7% of the population.
prevalence and onset :Other factors affecting likelihood of developing it, gender differences, ethnic differences.
Onset tends to be slightly earlier for men and Men tend to suffer from a higher proportion of negative symptoms and have a larger duration of the disorder which is associated with poor prognosis. Also, Race, country of birth, where you live can all affect likelihood of developing Sz
when do SZ episodes tend to appear?
late adolescence to mid-thirties with the peak onset being around early to mid-twenties in males and late twenties for females , often episodes develop over a period of time.
Prognosis
it is Difficult to predict course of illness, only 20% diagnosed are likely to respond well to treatment, A large percentage remain chronically ill.
What Other features are associated with the diagnosis of Sz ?
Sufferers can have cognitive functioning deficits, in areas such as working memory, language functioning, speed of information processing mood abnormalities.
What must be present in order for Diagnosis of SZ to be given?
Two or more of the key symptoms must be present for a high proportion of the last month for a diagnosis to be given at least one must be from delusions, hallucinations, disorganised thinking/speech, disorganised behaviour, negative symptoms.
If the patient is displaying signs of disturbed mood, such as mania or depression the symptoms of SZ must have existed before the disturbed mood for SZ to be diagnosed
the clinician must take into account if the patient has had any Issue such as brain damage or substance misuse that could account for the altered behaviour.
Positive symptoms
Add to the experience of the patient e.g. hallucinations
Negative symptoms
Subtract from normal behaviour e.g. social withdrawal
Delusions (positive)
Beliefs which are not true
Can’t be changed by others even if strong evidence to the contrary.
e.g. delusion of persecution, believing people are ‘out to get you’
e.g. grandiose delusions - believing you are powerful/remarkable e.g. famous rock star
Delusions can link to thought disorders e.g. thought insertion - believing people have put thoughts into your head.
Hallucinations (positive)
Experiencing external stimuli which are not present
Must be experienced when fully awake and conscious
e.g. auditory – hearing things which are not there – this is the most common hallucination
e.g. visual - seeing things which are not there
Disorganised thinking/speech
Ideas loosely connected or unconnected
speech can be incomprehensible in severe cases as sufferers are unable to make connections between their thoughts - called ‘word salad’
alogia - ‘poverty of speech’ (negative symptom)
Abnormal motor behaviour
Fidgeting, repetitive movements
Catatonic stupor – decrease in responsiveness, still, refuse to speak, odd postures (negative symptom)
