Neurological Soft Signs as Early Psychosis Predictors

1
Neurological Soft Signs as Early Psychosis
Predictors

• Alison Carr
• Neuropsychology
• Spring 2007

2
Neurological Soft Signs

• non-normative performance on a motor or
  sensory test the individual shows
  abnormalities, but none of the features of a
  fixed localizable neurological disorder.
• Bender, Fink, and Green (1947)

3
Physiological Reasons for NSS

• Dazzan et al. (2004)

4
Measuring NSS

• Neurological Evaluation Scale (NES) (Buchanan and
  Hendrichs, March 1989)

5
NSS
Dazzan and Murray (2002)
6
MRI in NSS patients

• Dazzaan et al., 2004

7
MRI in NSS patients

• Dazzaan et al., 2004

8
MRI in NSS patients

• Dazzaan et al., 2004

9
NSS in the Normative Population

• Kinney et al., 1986
• Ardilla and Roselli, 1996

10
Cause or Effect?

• If NSS are a cause
• If NSS are an effect

11
Why Schizophrenia?
12
NSS Cause

• Studies looking at NSS in first-episode psychosis
  patients
• Scottish Schizophrenia Research Group, 1987
• Browne et al, 2000

13
NSS Result

• Gupta et al., 1995
• King et al., 1991
• Smith et al., 1999

14
NSS in Patients with Mental Disorder

• Flyckt et al. (1999)
• Rochford et al. (1970)

15
NSS in Normative vs. Disordered Patients

• Fellick et al., 2001
• Cannon et al., 1999
• Illowsky-Karp et al., 2001

16
NSS as a predictor?

• Simon et al. (2005)
• Semerci et al. (2004)
• Fellick et al. (2001)

17
Conclusion

• Where research is now
• Future NSS research