M68. COGNITIVE IMPAIRMENT IN NEVER-TREATED SCHIZOPHRENIA SPECTRUM INDIVIDUALS

Abstract

Background: Cognitive impairment is a prominent feature of schizophrenia along disease progression. However, antipsychotic treatment may influence neuropsychological performance, hence reducing the chance of recognizing the distinctive cognitive features of the disease. We investigated the cognitive function in a group of antipsychotic-naive schizophrenia spectrum individuals and compared their results with a group of healthy controls. Method(s): Four groups of individuals were assessed: 87 individuals at Clinical High-Risk for psychosis (CHR), 91 First-Episode Psychosis patients (FEP), 16 Chronic Schizophrenia patients (CSz) and 77 Healthy Controls (HC). All participants underwent cognitive testing with the MATRICS Consensus Cognitive Battery (MCCB). Result(s): Repeated-measures analysis of variance revealed a significant effect of group (F(1,251)=97.1, p =.2 in all cases). On the other hand, the CHR group showed similar scores to the HC group in Visual learning (MD=11, p = .07). Conclusion(s): We found significant cognitive failures since atrisk stages of schizophrenia spectrum. Interestingly, some cognitive domains related to executive and memory function were similar across all clinical groups, including CSz. Moreover, patients with first-episode psychosis were as impaired as those with chronic disease. Since considerable cognitive impairment is present from early stages of the schizophrenia spectrum, and the performance of first-episode patients is similar to those at chronic stages, efforts for early detection and cognitive remediation are needed.