An examination of neurocognition and symptoms as predictors of post-hospital community tenure in treatment resistant schizophrenia.

Neurocognition and psychopathology are robust predictors of community functioning and relapse/rehospitalization in schizophrenia. Existing studies are however limited because they have ignored the most chronic, treatment-resistant patients. Moreover, the prediction of functional outcomes has yet to be extended to the duration of community tenure, an indicator of the capacity of chronically-hospitalized patients to gain traction in the community. The current study examined neurocognition and symptom severity at discharge as potential predictors of community tenure in chronically-hospitalized treatment-resistant patients. The study recruited 90 people with treatment-resistant schizophrenia who received services on an inpatient unit. Participants completed measures of psychopathology and neurocognition prior to discharge. Following discharge, participants were tracked at current residences six months and one year post-discharge to assess community tenure. The percentage of individuals who continued to live in the community at 12-month follow-up was 51%. Severe negative symptoms but not neurocognitive impairment or positive symptoms was a significant predictor of shorter post-hospital community tenure. Of the negative symptoms domain, anhedonia-asociality proved to be the most relevant predictor of community tenure in the sample. The capacity to elicit goal-directed behaviors in response to anticipated physical and social rewards may be an important treatment target for sustaining community tenure.

Effect of exercise and cognitive activity on self-reported sleep quality in community-dwelling older adults with cognitive complaints: a randomized controlled trial.

OBJECTIVES: To compare the effects of different types of physical and mental activity on self-reported sleep quality over 12 weeks in older adults with cognitive and sleep complaints. DESIGN: Randomized controlled trial. SETTING: General community. PARTICIPANTS: Seventy-two inactive community-dwelling older adults with self-reported sleep and cognitive problems (mean age 73.3 ± 6.1; 60% women). INTERVENTION: Random allocation to four arms using a two-by-two factorial design: aerobic+cognitive training, aerobic+educational DVD, stretching+cognitive training, and stretching+educational DVD arms (60 min/d, 3 d/wk for physical and mental activity for 12 weeks). MEASUREMENTS: Change in sleep quality using seven questions from the Sleep Disorders Questionnaire on the 2005 to 2006 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (range 0-28, with higher scores reflecting worse sleep quality). Analyses used intention-to-treat methods. RESULTS: Sleep quality scores did not differ at baseline, but there was a significant difference between the study arms in change in sleep quality over time (P < .005). Mean sleep quality scores improved significantly more in the stretching+educational DVD arm (5.1 points) than in the stretching+cognitive training (1.2 points), aerobic+educational DVD (1.1 points), or aerobic+cognitive training (0.25 points) arms (all P < .05, corrected for multiple comparisons). Differences between arms were strongest for waking at night (P = .02) and taking sleep medications (P = .004). CONCLUSION: Self-reported sleep quality improved significantly more with low-intensity physical and mental activities than with moderate- or high-intensity activities in older adults with self-reported cognitive and sleep difficulties. Future longer-term studies with objective sleep measures are needed to corroborate these results.

[Clinical management and rehabilitation of the treatment refractory patient: conceptual foundations and outcome data]. / Gestion clinique et réhabilitation du patient souffrant de schizophrénie et réfractaire au traitement: fondements conceptuels et résultats (première partie).

Despite advances in psychopharmacology for people with schizophrenia, many patients remain too disabled to be discharged from public psychiatric facilities. This paper describes the development of a public-private partnership which led to the creation of a specialized, intensive behavioral rehabilitation program for schizophrenia patients who were considered to be treatment-refractory at public hospitals. The essential elements of this treatment program are described, along with the philosophical bases of its treatment. Outcome data are discussed to emphasize the point that when evidence-based treatment is implemented with this population, outcomes can be positive in most cases, and therefore, the number of "treatment-refractory" patients is actually less than is estimated based on response to medication alone.