The symptoms of schizophrenia are divided into four domains: positive, negative, cognitive, and mood.
Negative symptoms include a decrease in emotional range, poverty of speech, and loss of interests and drive. Patients with schizophrenia typically present with tremendous inertia.
Hallucinations (false sensations) in people with schizophrenia are usually auditory. These fall into the positive symptom domain. Other positive symptoms include delusions (fixed false belief) and disorganized speech, loose associations, disconnected words, and "word salads." In addition, behavior appears to be disorganized, random, and disconnected.
People with schizophrenia frequently present with cognitive symptoms that affect their ability to function. They may have difficulty focusing and concentrating on subjects.
A typical mood domain symptom is flat affect. People with schizophrenia may talk in a monotone about seemingly highly emotional topics.
Learn more about the initial clinical presentation of schizophrenia.
Medscape©2023WebMD, LLC
Any views expressed above are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect the views of WebMD or Medscape.
Cite this: Stephen Soreff,Heidi Moawad.Fast Five Quiz: Schizophrenia Presentation and Diagnosis-Medscape-May31,2023.
FAQs
Schizophrenia, a serious mental illness, affects 1% of the global population and is marked by hallucinations, delusions, disorganized speech, grossly disorganized behavior, and negative signs and symptoms such as reduced emotional expression, avolition, and cognitive impairment.
What is schizophrenia fast facts? ›
Schizophrenia isn't just unusual thinking and behavior. Schizophrenia causes symptoms severe enough to cause problems at home, at work, and with other people. About 1 in 5 people with schizophrenia try to kill themselves, and many more have thought about it.
What is schizophrenia 5 diagnosis? ›
The presence of 2 (or more) of the following, each present for a significant portion of time during a 1-month period (or less if successfully treated), with at least 1 of them being (1), (2), or (3): (1) delusions, (2) hallucinations, (3) disorganized speech, (4) grossly disorganized or catatonic behavior, and (5) ...
What is the answer to schizophrenia? ›
Lifelong treatment with medicines and psychosocial therapy can help manage schizophrenia, though there is no cure for it. These treatments are needed, even when symptoms ease. Some people may need to stay in a hospital during a crisis if symptoms are severe.
What are the major types of symptoms noted in schizophrenia include __________? ›
Symptoms of schizophrenia include psychotic symptoms such as hallucinations, delusions, and thought disorder (unusual ways of thinking), as well as reduced expression of emotions, reduced motivation to accomplish goals, difficulty in social relationships, motor impairment, and cognitive impairment.
How is schizophrenia diagnosed? ›
Diagnosing schizophrenia involves plenty of testing, including blood tests and brain scans. These are done to rule out other possible causes of your symptoms. Schizophrenia tests are used after you have been diagnosed.
What is the main cause of schizophrenia? ›
The exact causes of schizophrenia are unknown. Research suggests a combination of physical, genetic, psychological and environmental factors can make a person more likely to develop the condition. Some people may be prone to schizophrenia, and a stressful or emotional life event might trigger a psychotic episode.
What is schizophrenia easily explained? ›
Schizophrenia is a chronic brain disorder that affects less than one percent of the U.S. population. When schizophrenia is active, symptoms can include delusions, hallucinations, disorganized speech, trouble with thinking and lack of motivation.
What are the 5 A's of schizophrenia? ›
The negative symptom domain consists of five key constructs: blunted affect, alogia (reduction in quantity of words spoken), avolition (reduced goal-directed activity due to decreased motivation), asociality, and anhedonia (reduced experience of pleasure).
What are the 4 A's of schizophrenia? ›
The fundamental symptoms, which are virtually present through all the course of the disorder (7), are also known as the famous Bleuler's four A's: Alogia, Autism, Ambivalence, and Affect blunting (8). Delusion is regarded as one of the accessory symptoms because it is episodic in the course of schizophrenia.
The active phase of your schizophrenia may last several years or up to a decade. This can be an alarming period for you and your loved ones. But it's often followed by a less stormy phase where your more intense symptoms, like hallucinations, stabilize.
Can schizophrenia be cured? ›
Schizophrenia isn't curable, but it's often treatable. In a small percentage of cases, people can recover from schizophrenia entirely. But this isn't a cure because there's no way of knowing who will relapse and who won't. Because of that, experts consider those who recover from this condition “in remission.”
What is the main drug used to treat schizophrenia? ›
Haloperidol, fluphenazine, and chlorpromazine are known as conventional, or typical, antipsychotics and have been used to treat schizophrenia for years. However, they sometimes have movement-related side effects, such as tremors and dystonia, a condition that causes involuntary muscle contractions.
Can schizophrenics live a normal life? ›
Schizophrenia is one of the most common serious mental health conditions. About 1 in 100 people will experience schizophrenia in their lifetime, with many continuing to lead normal lives.
How does someone with schizophrenia present? ›
Schizophrenia usually involves delusions (false beliefs), hallucinations (seeing or hearing things that don't exist), unusual physical behavior, and disorganized thinking and speech. It is common for people with schizophrenia to have paranoid thoughts or hear voices.
What are 3 common symptoms of schizophrenia? ›
Schizophrenia is a chronic brain disorder that affects less than one percent of the U.S. population. When schizophrenia is active, symptoms can include delusions, hallucinations, disorganized speech, trouble with thinking and lack of motivation.
When does schizophrenia start presenting? ›
In most people with schizophrenia, symptoms generally start in the mid- to late 20s, though it can start later, up to the mid-30s. Schizophrenia is considered early onset when it starts before the age of 18.
What are the appearance of schizophrenia? ›
The symptoms of schizophrenia are usually classified into: positive symptoms – any change in behaviour or thoughts, such as hallucinations or delusions. negative symptoms – where people appear to withdraw from the world around then, take no interest in everyday social interactions, and often appear emotionless and flat.