[ name in schizophrenia: a study of 60 patients]

ABSTRACT

Clinical aspects in schizophrenia suggest a unique relationship with the proper name. Discuss the validity of the hypothesis that the non-transmission of the surname may be a vulnerability factor in schizophrenia. Descriptive cross-sectional study conducted among 60 patients with schizophrenia and their families. Data were collected using a semi-structured interview. Seven patients carried a different surname from their father [11.6% of participants]. The disparity has only concerned the child with schizophrenia. Family characteristics [birth rank, desired character of pregnancy, family history of schizophrenia] and evolutif profile of the disease were comparable between patients with a family name according to the father and those with a different surname. It appears that patients with schizophrenia maintain a special relationship with the proper name, which could be involved in the genesis of schizophrenia. Our early hypothesis, supported by the psychoanalytic, transgenerational and behavioral theories, would be a plausible starting point for studies with a broader spectrum including witnesses of the general and psychiatric populations