![paranoid schizophrenic paranoid schizophrenic](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/D3iVCJvsiXo/hqdefault.jpg)
13 argued that the attention deficits of patients with schizophrenia probably reflect a deficit in the modulation of the brain activity in response to transitory variations instead of a deficit in sustained attention.įailures in both these components of attention, selective and sustained attention, are based on the incapacity of eliminating irrelevant stimuli, which in turn is associated with inhibitory control. Some studies suggest that sustained attention is a valuable endophenotype for schizophrenia 12. Sustained attention is the ability to maintain attention and remain in a state of vigilance during a determined period of time 11. On the contrary, there is consistent evidence regarding alterations in sustained attention. Some authors have found that selective attention is intact for visual tasks 8,9, while others show that it has a specific role in the inability to correctly perceive reality in schizophrenia 10. Studies on the function of this component in schizophrenia are still controversial. Attention has the role of selecting some signals for higher levels of processing while preventing other signals to access those same high levels of processing. Posner 7 established that selective attention involves performance when there are conflicts between signals. The components most studied in schizophrenia are selective attention and sustained attention. It is important to discriminate these different components of attention to correctly assess its role in schizophrenia, as they may be altered selectively. Attention is a central mechanism for the control of information processing, activating and inhibiting processes, and constituting a complex system that involves different networks in specific areas of the brain 1.Īttention is constituted by several subsystems, each of which is responsible for different operations including selection or focalization, sustained attention and inhibitory attentional control. Given the conceptual, neuroanatomical and neurofunctional complexity of attention, it cannot be reduced to a simple definition, linked to a single anatomic structure, or assessed by a single test 6. Moreover, attention seems to be the neurocognitive predictor of motor skill ability and social problem solving 5. These disorders have been observed in children with high genetic risk of schizophrenia and in the direct relatives of patients 2-4. Key words: Chronic schizophrenia Positive symptoms Inhibitory control Attentional deficit.Īttention deficits are a main neurocognitive feature of schizophrenia. No significant correlations were observed between negative symptoms and attentional performance.Ĭonclusions: The pattern of results obtained in this paper evidences the role of an inhibitory control deficit in patients with chronic schizophrenia that could also be involved in other attentional and cognitive failures, and also be connected to positive symptoms. An inverse correlation was observed between inhibitory control and delusions and disorganized thinking. Inhibitory control and sustained attention were the most affected traits in schizophrenic patients. Results: Schizophrenic patients exhibited lower attentional scores in all tests compared to the control group. Attentional components were measured by Forward Digit Span, Symbol Search, Digit Symbol Coding, Stroop Test and Picture Completion. Symptom severity (positive symptoms, negative symptoms, and general psychopathology) was assessed with the Scale for the Assessment of Positive and Negative Symptoms (SAPS and SANS). The groups were matched in age, sex, and level of education. Methods: The study included 32 patients diagnosed with chronic schizophrenia and 32 healthy subjects. Attention span, focused attention, selective attention, sustained attention and inhibitory response, were assessed in patients with chronic schizophrenia and healthy matched controls. To correctly assess the role of attention in schizophrenia it is necessary to discriminate its different attentional components, which may by selectively altered. Argentinaīackground and Objectives: Attention is a central mechanism controlling information processing, activating and inhibiting processes, and forming a complex system including diferent networks in specific areas of the brain 1. *** Sanatorio "Profesor León Morra", Córdoba. ** Carrera de Psicología, Facultad de Filosofía y Humanidades, Universidad Católica de Córdoba, Córdoba. * Laboratorio de Psicología, Facultad de Psicología, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Córdoba. Attention in patients with chronic schizophrenia: Deficit in inhibitory control and positive symptomsįlavia S.