Course and aging in institutionalized schizophrenia: a comparison of cognitive performance profiles

Neurocognitive deficits in schizophrenia have been studied extensively, but there is no consensus about their course or their analysis in aging population. The objective of the present study is to compare neurocognitive profiles between people over (group A) and under (group B) 65 years of age with schizophrenia and between aging individuals with schizophrenia and healthy individuals of the same age (group C). 90 people enrolled in the study (44 male, 46 female), divided into 3 age groups. The participants were assessed with the Cambridge Cognitive Examination-Revised (CAMCOG-R) and the Memory Subtests of the Barcelona Test – Revised Edition. Worse scores were found (p< .05) when comparing group A with B (except in memory subtests; no difference) and group A with C, being Language the area where more effect size is observed (χ2= 0.481). We conclude that the aging process produces more cognitive deficits in schizophrenia than in healthy population and that, in general, the deficits in patients with schizophrenia intensify with age.