Cumulative Effect of Psychosis and Aging on Cognitive Function in Patients Diagnosed With Schizophrenia Spectrum Disorders: A Cognitive Domain Approach.

backgroundSchizophrenia spectrum disorders are characterized by cognitive decline, which is evident even in the prodromal phase. Aging is a complex gradual procedure that affects, among other organs, the central nervous system, resulting in age-related cognitive decline.

objectiveThe objective of this study is to assess the cognitive function of patients diagnosed with psychotic disorders, in comparison with healthy controls, along the age spectrum.

methodsSixty patients diagnosed with schizophrenia spectrum disorders in remission, 20-59 years old, and 60 healthy controls, matched by age and educational level, from the region of Thessaly in Central Greece, were evaluated, with respect to their cognitive performance, using the Greek version of the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA). Correlations between age and MoCA total and cognitive domains' scores, as well as statistical analysis of variance (ANOVA) and t-test among age groups, were performed using Statistical Product and Service Solutions (SPSS, version 23; IBM SPSS Statistics for Windows, Armonk, NY).

resultsThe MoCA score was negatively correlated with age, both in the patients' group (p<0.001) and in the control group (p=0.001). A significant statistical difference in mean MoCA scores between patients and healthy controls was observed, not only in the total sample (p<0.001) but also in all age groups (20-29: p=0.006, 40-49: p=0.024, 50-59: p<0.001), except for age group 30-39 (30-39: p=0.356). Statistically significant differences were also found between patients and healthy controls in the total sample, regarding specific cognitive domains, in the visuospatial and executive function domain (p=0.01), attention domain (p<0.001), language domain (p<0.001), and orientation domain (p<0.005). Interestingly, different deterioration patterns in cognitive domains were observed in each age group. Specifically, in the age group 20-29, statistically significant differences were found between patients and healthy controls in the language domain (p<0.014) and orientation domain (p<0.041). No difference was found in the age group 30-39, while statistically significant differences were found between patients and healthy controls in the age group 40-49 in the attention domain (p<0.001) and language domain (p<0.001). Finally, in the age group 50-59, such differences were found in the visuospatial and executive function domain (p=0.041), attention domain (p=0.006), and language domain (p=0.001). Statistically significant cognitive decline occurs in a shorter period in the patients' group, suggesting an accelerated cognitive decline in psychotic patients after middle age.

conclusionsAge-related cognitive decline in psychotic patients occurs at an accelerated rate in relation to the control sample, with age-specific cognitive domain decline patterns, due to the cumulative effect of aging and psychosis on cognition. Further, larger, multicenter research should focus on establishing these results and designing relevant procognitive interventions.