• Journal of Yeungnam Medical Science
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• v.11 no.2
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• pp.338-351
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• 1994

This study was to find out whether there were differences in the levels of depressions between positive and negative schizophrenics. This research was derived from the fact that negative schizophrenics show higher levels of depression than positive schizophrenics. This study also examined the levels of psychomotor dysfunction in positive and negative schizophrenics. For this study, there were 453 subjects. They consisted of 119 positive schizophrenics, 122 negative schizophrenics and 212 normal people. They were asked to complete Zung's Self-Rating Depression Scale(SDS) and to perform one subtest, Digit Symbol of KWIS(Korean Wechsler Intelligence Scale). Subjects' levels of depression were measured by the SDS. the level of psychomotor dysfunction was measured by Digit Symbol subtest of Korean Wechsler Intelligence Scale. ANOV A and Duncan's multiple comparison analysis were used to examine whether there were differences of depression and psychomotor dysfunction among the normal people, positive and negative schizophrenics. The results were as follows: It was found that the depression level was higher in the negative schizophrenic patients than positive schizophrenic patients. Levels of depression were significantly higher in negative schizophrenics than positive schizophrenics. Psychomotor retardation symptom was the most effective variable that discriminates between the normals and the schizophrenics. And it would be concluded that the psychomotor dysfunction was more severe in negative schizophrenics than positive schizophrenics.

• Journal of Yeungnam Medical Science
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• v.10 no.1
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• pp.48-57
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• 1993

The purpose of this study was to investigate the characteristics of personality dimensions of schizophrenics. Subjects in this study were 71 chronic schizophrenics, 59 acute schizophrenics, and 87 normal persons. All subjects was asked to respond to EPQ(Korean Version Eysenck Personality Questionnaire). Collected data were analyzed by using the statistical techniques of discriminant function analysis, t-test and one-way variable analysis. The results were as follows : Acute and chronic schizophrenics were higher than normal persons on psychoticism score. However, there was no significant difference between chronic and acute schizophrenics on the psychoticism score. Discriminant analysis was adopted to identify the scales in EPQ that were most effective in discriminating between normals and schizophrenics. Psychoticism of EPQ function was the most effective variable that discriminates between the normals and the schizophrenics.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society for Emotion and Sensibility Conference
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• 1999.11a
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• pp.356-361
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• 1999

본 연구에서는 정신분열증 환자들이 인식하는 타인의 얼굴표정에 관한 정보를 정상집단과 비교해보았다. 정신분열증환자 30명과 정상인 31명을 대상으로 얼굴 계인 검사와 28개의 얼굴표정에 대한 명명과제를 실시하였다. 연구 결과, 얼굴표정에 대한 명명에서 정신분열증 환자집단은 정상집단에 비해 얼굴표정을 명명하는 일치율이 낮았고 흐뭇함과 두려움을 표현하는 표정을 인식하는데 어려움을 나타냈다. 또한, 28개의 얼굴표정들 중, 정신분열증 환자들은 7개의 표정(흐뭇함 3, 두려움 2, 경멸 1, 나른한 1)을 정상집단과 다른 정서로 명명하였다. 연구 결과를 통해, 정신분열증 환자들은 타인의 얼굴정서를 인식하는데 정상인들과 차이를 나타낸다는 것을 알 수 있었으며 이러한 결과를 토대로 정신분열증 환자들의 타인의 정서인식능력의 결핍에 대해서 논의하였다.

• Journal of Yeungnam Medical Science
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• v.10 no.2
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• pp.338-344
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• 1993

The purpose of this study was to investigate the trait cortical arousal level, measured by extraversion-introversion, in schizophrenics. Subjects in this study were 231 (chronic schizophrenics=78, acute schizophrenics=62, and normal persons=91). All subjects were asked to respond to extraversion-introversion subtest scale in the korean EPQ(Korean Version Eysenck Personality Questionnaire). Collected data were analyzed by using the t-test and one-way analysis of variance. Results were as follows : 1) Trait cortical arousal level of chronic schizophrenics, which was measured by extraversion-introversion subtest scale in the Korean EPQ, was statistically higher than that of acute schizophrenics and normals. 2) Acute schizophrenics and normals were not significantly different in the trait cortical arousal level. However, the trait cortical arousal level of chronic schizophrenics was higher than that of acute schizophrenics. Therefore, it may state that the trait cortical arousal level of schizophrenics is getting higher when schizophrenic symptoms become more chronic.

• Korean Journal of Biological Psychiatry
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• v.3 no.1
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• pp.109-114
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• 1996

We have previously reported that Korean schizophrenic patients hove low production of IL-2 in vitro suggestive of autoimmunity to the pathogenesis of the disorder. In an attempt to further explore this issue, we measured in vivo serum levels of interleukins(IL-$1{\beta}$, IL-2, and IL-6) using a quantitative "sandwich" enzyme immunoassay(ELISA) in 26 male schizophrenic patients and in 26 age-matched normal controls. Patients met DSM-IV criteria for schizophrenia and were drug free for at least six months. The severity of symptoms was assessed by SANS and SAPS. We found a significant increase of IL-2 level(p<0.05) in schizophrenic patients as compared with normal controls. There were significant positive correlations between IL-2, IL-6 levels and negative symptom scores. There were no correlations between age, age at onset, duration of illness and interleukin levels. Our results may support the hypothesis of viral-autoimmune dysfunction in schizophrenia. IL-2 or IL-6 may be associated with specific clinical feature in schizophrenic syndrome, especially negative symptom.

• Sleep Medicine and Psychophysiology
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• v.1 no.1
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• pp.87-98
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• 1994

Objectives: To examine a defect in inhibitory gating of auditory evoked response in schizophrenics, to compare P3 latency and amplitude in negative and positive schizophrenics, and to assess the association of P3 with family history of the psychiatric disorders, electroconvulsive therapy, and clinical features. Methods: 54 schizophrenics(male 31, female 23) and 75 controls(male 33, female 42) were tested with event-related potential paradigm designed to elicit P3 response and Frankfurter Beschwerde Fragebogen. Results: In schizophrenics, the latency of P3 was significantly more delayed and the amplitude of P3 was significantly more reduced than in the controls. Significant differences in P3 latency and amplitude between negative and positive schizophrenics were not found. And significant difference in the P3 latency and amplitude between schizophrenics with family histories of psychiatric disorder and those without family histories of psychiatric disorder was not found also. The P3 latency and amplitude was not significantly related with electroconvulsive therapy and other clinical features such as age, duration of illness, onset of inllness, number of admission, and doses of antipsychotics etc. Conclusion: These results suggested that schizophrenics had a dysfunction in the process of selective attention and that P3 was not significantly related with family history of the psychiatric disorders, positive and negative symptoms, electro1convulsive therapy, and clinical features in schizophrenics.

• Korean Journal of Biological Psychiatry
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• v.2 no.2
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• pp.237-247
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• 1995

The finding of contrasting results regarding an association between schizophrenia and the Mlul polymorphism site in the dopamine $D_3$ receptor gene prompted us to study the distribution of this palymorphism in Korean schizophrenic patients and controls. The author's approach was case-control study. Schizophrenic patients (n=66) and controls (n=76) were examined by case-control study for distribution of the Mlul polymorphism of the dopamine $D_3$ receptor gene in Korean population to minimize the effect of racial differencies in gene frequencies. The frequency of the allele 1 in schizophrenic patients and controls was 0.66 and 0.76, respectively. There was no significant differencies in the frequency of the allele 1 between schizophrenic patients and controls ($x^2$=3.07, p>.05), and between positive and negative schizophrenic patients ($x^2$=1.02, p>.05). We present here the evidence of a lack of alleic association between the Mlul polymorphism of the dopamine $D_3$ receptor gene and Korean schizophrenic patients and also report no increased homozygosity for the Mlul polymorphism. The assumption that the dopamine $D_3$ receptor gene has a predisposing role in schizophrenia was not supported by this case-control study. Although, the possibility that this gene has a minor gene effects in the etiology of schizophrenia cannot be excluded because of the intrinsic limitations of the methods of analysis and number of subjects in our study.

• Korean Journal of Biological Psychiatry
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• v.2 no.1
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• pp.57-62
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• 1995

Objects : Clozapine, prototype of the atypical neuroleptics, was known to have unique antipsychotic effect with a few extrapyramidal effects. While most typical antipsychotic agents mainly block $D_2$ receptors, clozapine has higher affinity for dopamine $D_4$ receptor than for $D_2$ receptor. Many researchers have tried to find out the relationship between schizophrenia and the abnormality of the genes coding dopamine receptors. But no consistent findings were reported. Recently, dopamine $D_4$ receptor was fully sequenced, and the alleles of dopamine $D_4$ receptor gene was found in unusual form on the 48th base pair. Our study was performed to identify the distribution of the dopamine $D_4$ receptor alleles of schizophrenics and normal controls, and whether any difference between the dopamine $D_4$ receptor alleles of schizophrenics and that of normal controls exists. Methods : DNA was extracted from the blood of schizophrenic patients(N=60) and normal controls(N=60). Part of the dopamine $D_4$ receptor gene was amplified by PCR, and amplified DNA was electrophoresed. Authors compared the distribution of the alleles of dopamine $D_4$ receptor gene of normal controls and that of schizophrenic patients. Results : Six kinds of alleles of $D_4$ receptor were observed both groups. The fourth repeat form of alleles was the most common in both schizophrenic patients(75.8%) and normal controls(70.3%), so there was not significant difference between two groups. Conclusion : The Difference in the distribution of the dopamine $D_4$ receptor gene alleles is not thought to be responsible for the pathophysiology of the schizophrenia. However, the difference in the expression of the dopamine $D_4$ receptor gene between normal and schizophrenia is left to be scrutinized.

• Korean Journal of Biological Psychiatry
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• v.1 no.1
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• pp.109-116
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• 1994

It is not known whether negative symptoms and cognitive functions are dissociable or improvements in symptoms are reflected in improvements in cognitive functions in chronic schizophrenic patients. We administered clozapine to evaluate its effect on cognitive functions in chronic schizophrenic patients and to show correlations between improvement in psychotic symptoms and in cognitive functions. Neuropsychological tests such as Wisconsin Card Sorting Test, Digit Span test and Judgment of Line Orientation Test were applied to 16 chronic schizophrenic patients at baseline and after 9 months of treatment with clozapine. Using BPRS we assessed psychopathology before initiation of clozapine and at 9 months. Clozapine improved both positive and negative symptoms in chronic schizophrenic patients significantly. After nine months of clozapine treatment, significant improvements occurred in attention, short-term memory and visual perception ability. And interestingly we noted the trend of improvement in executive functions even though they were not statistical significant. Any significant correlations between the clinical improvement and change in congnitive functions were not observed. Long-term treatment with clozapine improved parts of cognitive functions of chronic schizophrenics. The results of the study suggest that deficits in simple cognitive functions as well as psychotic symptoms are improved after 3 month period of short-term treatment, but executive functions requiring more sophisticated processing of information could be improved after more than 9 months of long-term treatment.

• Korean Journal of Biological Psychiatry
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• v.3 no.1
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• pp.121-126
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• 1996

Objects : There is considerable interest in the role of serotonin(5-HT) in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia. Cimetidine, $H_2$ antagonist, produces transient increase in serum prolactin(PRL) levels by indirect serotonergic mechanism in man following intravenous administration. Therefore the authors investigated the effects of cimetidine on serum PRL levels of male unmedicated schizophrenics. Method : Baseline serum prolactin level and psychopathology were measured at 9:00 AM. in the two groups(12 positive schizophrenics, 7 negative schizophrenics) and $T_{30}$ levels were measured 30 minutes after intravenous injection of cimetidine (ie, 9:30 AM) Results: 1) Baseline prolactin levels were not different in the three groups. 2) Prolactin levels of 30 minutes after intravenous injection of cimetidine($T_{30}$) compared with baseline prolactin levels were increased all in the three groups. 3) Degrees of interval change from baseline to $T_{30}$ were significantly different between normal control and negative schizophrenics(p<0.05). Conclusion : The prolactin response to cimetidine was significantly blunted in negative male schizophrenics than normal control. These data are consistent with the hypothesis of an abnormality of serotonergic activity, including down-regulation $5-HT_2$ receptors, in male negative schizophrenics.