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Different psychopathological models and quantified EEG in schizophrenia

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 September 1999

A. W. F. HARRIS ,
L. WILLIAMS ,
E. GORDON ,
H. BAHRAMALI  and
S. SLEWA-YOUNAN
A. W. F. HARRIS
Affiliation:
Department of Psychological Medicine, University of Sydney; School of Psychology, University of New England, Armidale; and Cognitive Neuroscience Unit, Westmead Hospital, Westmead, NSW, Australia
L. WILLIAMS
Affiliation:
Department of Psychological Medicine, University of Sydney; School of Psychology, University of New England, Armidale; and Cognitive Neuroscience Unit, Westmead Hospital, Westmead, NSW, Australia
E. GORDON
Affiliation:
Department of Psychological Medicine, University of Sydney; School of Psychology, University of New England, Armidale; and Cognitive Neuroscience Unit, Westmead Hospital, Westmead, NSW, Australia
H. BAHRAMALI
Affiliation:
Department of Psychological Medicine, University of Sydney; School of Psychology, University of New England, Armidale; and Cognitive Neuroscience Unit, Westmead Hospital, Westmead, NSW, Australia
S. SLEWA-YOUNAN
Affiliation:
Department of Psychological Medicine, University of Sydney; School of Psychology, University of New England, Armidale; and Cognitive Neuroscience Unit, Westmead Hospital, Westmead, NSW, Australia
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Abstract

Background. This study compared the ability of two different models of psychopathology in schizophrenia to account for findings in the quantified electroencephalogram (qEEG) recorded from midline sites in a group of 40 subjects with schizophrenia. The first model was based on the positive and negative syndrome dichotomy, the second was a tripartite model that resembled Liddle's syndromes of psychomotor poverty, disorganization and reality distortion (Liddle, 1987a).

Methods. A group of 40 subjects with predominantly chronic schizophrenia was assessed with the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) prior to the acquisition of their quantified electroencephalogram. The relationship between EEG data and symptomatology was explored, initially with the PANSS positive and negative subscales and then with a tripartite model derived from a principal component analysis of the 14 positive and negative subscale items.

Results. The tripartite syndrome model showed a greater concordance with the qEEG of the subjects than the dichotomous model. ‘Psychomotor poverty’ was significantly positively correlated with both delta and beta power and ‘reality distortion’ was significantly positively correlated with alpha-2 power. No significant correlations between the positive and negative syndrome dichotomy and the qEEG were observed.

Conclusions. This study lends support to the factor analysis of psychopathology, and specifically the tripartite syndrome model of schizophrenia, as a step in explicating the biological dimensions of the disorder.

Type
Research Article
Information
Psychological Medicine , Volume 29 , Issue 5 , September 1999 , pp. 1175 - 1181
Copyright
© 1999 Cambridge University Press

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