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Art 3A10.1007 2Fs10862 011 9224 y
Art 3A10.1007 2Fs10862 011 9224 y
DOI 10.1007/s10862-011-9224-y
Abstract Schizophrenia and intellectual disability (ID) cooccur three times more than would be expected by chance. This
has led to speculation that a particular form of schizophrenia
may give rise to both the symptoms of schizophrenia and the
intellectual impairment. If this was the case, one may expect
the presentation of schizophrenia in an ID population to differ
from that in a population with average/high IQ. A systematic
review and meta-analysis was undertaken of studies comparing
the clinical presentation of schizophrenia in people with mild/
borderline ID to that in people with average/high IQ. Five
studies were eligible for inclusion. Four reported more negative
symptoms in the ID population, while two reported more
positive symptoms. Meta-analysis demonstrated that the ID
population experienced more negative symptoms. The
available evidence supports the proposal that the clinical
presentation of schizophrenia in an ID population differs from
that in a population with normal IQ.
Keywords Schizophrenia . Learning disability . Intellectual
impairment . Dual diagnosis . Symptoms
Introduction
In the first half of the twentieth century there was considerable
interest in the occurrence of psychosis in people with
intellectual impairment. Both the feasibility and potential
reasons for such co-occurrence were topics of much debate,
these discussions frequently being influenced by the prevailing psychodynamic and eugenic theories of the time (Turner
1989). One of the earliest and most influential contributors to
this discussion was Emil Kraepelin. He estimated that some
K. A. Welch (*) : S. M. Lawrie : W. Muir : E. C. Johnstone
Division of Psychiatry, School of Molecular and Clinical
Medicine, University of Edinburgh, Royal Edinburgh Hospital,
Edinburgh, UK EH10 5HF
e-mail: kwelch1@staffmail.ed.ac.uk
Methods
The following databases were searched: Medline (1950 to
August 2008), PsychINFO (1950 to August 2008) and
EMBASE (1980 to August 2008). The aim was to identify
all English language studies comparing the clinical features
of schizophrenia in adults (aged 1665) with ID or
borderline intellectual functioning (BIF) to those in individuals with average/high IQ. Participants with BIF,
described in DSM-IV as those in the IQ range 7184
(American Psychiatric Association 1994), were included to
increase the yield of studies. The search terms were
schizophrenia or psychosis, combined using the AND
operator with learning disability, mental retardation,
intellectual disability, intellectual impairment or borderline intellectual functioning, AND symptoms, or
psychopathology. Both free-text and expanded medical
subject headings were used. Subject headings were adapted
to the specific subject headings of the biomedical databases
used. The search strategy was supplemented by inspecting
the reference lists of included articles.
247
Exclusions: no non-intellectually
disabled schizophrenic comparison
group (5), no recognised scale for
the assessment of psychotic
symptoms used (4).
248
Results
Those studies eligible for inclusion together compared a
total of 280 individuals with schizophrenia and mild ID/BIF
to 909 individuals with schizophrenia and average/high IQ.
In the case of all studies those with intellectual impairment
had an IQ greater than or equal to 50 and less than or equal
to 81. In two studies there was a significant age difference
between the two groups, the older group being the learning
disabled group in one of these studies and the comparison
group the elder in the other. Similarly, in one study illness
duration was greater in the group with intellectual impairment, and in one study it was greater in the comparator
group (though statistical significance of the latter finding
could not be ascertained). When it could be ascertained
from the data provided, in all but one study gender
distribution of the two groups was balanced.
The mild ID/BIF group scored higher on scales measuring
negative symptoms in four of the five studies reviewed, higher
on scales measuring positive symptoms in two, and higher on
scales measuring general symptoms in two. Meta-analytic
comparison of positive, negative and general symptomatology
in the two groups would have been desirable. Unfortunately
however meta-analytic comparison could only be undertaken
for negative symptoms. This included only three studies,
Discussion
Only three case controlled studies could be identified
comparing the clinical presentation of schizophrenia in ID
to that in people with average/high IQ. This increased to
five when individuals with borderline intellectual functioning were included. Given the historical interest in this
population this paucity of studies is surprising. It may
however be partially explained by the fact that one of the
earliest modern studies addressing the clinical presentation
of schizophrenia in people with ID indicated a clinical
picture much like that of people without ID (Meadows et al.
1991). This essentially negative finding may have reduced
interest in further studies. The reasons for this negative
finding do need explanation, which may be provided by the
studys sole reliance on the Schizophrenia and Affective
Disorders Schedule-Lifetime Version (SADS-L) for detection of psychopathlogy (Endicott and Spitzer 1978). It is
widely recognised that rating scales vary in their ability to
detect negative symptoms, with the SANS regarded as a
particularly sensitive tool (Foussias and Remington 2008).
The Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) (Kay
et al. 1987) was derived from the SANS (Andreasen 1989),
and it seems significant that all four studies employing
either of these scales did find more negative symptoms in
the ID group, whereas that using only the SADS-L did not.
When the study of Meadows et al. is excluded, the two
other studies addressing the clinical presentation of schizophrenia in individuals with mild ID both found increased
negative symptoms (Bouras et al. 2004; Doody et al. 1998).
This was also the case in the two studies investigating
34
482
53
313
No data
No data
No data
22.8
26.8 (8.7)*
43.2*
41.1
48.6
43.2*
Mean age
39
SADS-L
PANSS
CPRS
SANS
59
PANSS
No data
matched
5.0
17.0*
<81
50-70
No data
41:12**
n.s.d.
n.s.d
!8:8 (69%)
Ratio M:F
53
CPRS
SANS
5070
5070
104 58-81
25
SADS-L
4.9
12.9*
45.4*
39.5
No data
matched
No data
27:26**
n.s.d.
n.s.d
16:9 (64%)
48.6
35.4*
Main findings
No data
No data
No data
24.4
22.5 (6.5)*
n.s.d. Reported as no significant difference in source paper, further information not available
Those with schizophrenia spectrum psychoses included rather than just schizophrenia
Borderline intellectual impairment refers to IQ in range 7181. The methodology of both studies identifying these individuals will have resulted in the inclusion of people with mild ID. By use
of the Weschler Adult Intelligence Scale-Revised, the Hassiotis et al. study estimated these to be 43% of the total. This estimation was not undertaken in the Chaplin et al. study
Abbreviations: NART National Adult Reading Test (Nelson 1982), CPRS Comprehensive Psychopathological Rating Scale (Asberg et al. 1978), SANS Scale for the Assessment of Negative Symptoms
(Andreasen 1989), PANSS Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (Kay et al. 1987), SADS-L Schizophrenia and Affective Disorders Schedule-Lifetime Version (Endicott and Spitzer 1978)
26
Study (year)
Meadows et al. (1991) People comorbid for mild mental retardation and schizophrenia,
identified from mental handicap services caseloads
Doody et al. (1998)
People comorbid for mild learning disability and schizophrenia,
identified from records of psychiatric admissions
Hassiotis et al. (1999) People with borderline intellectual impairment (or mild ID)
determined on basis of NART score. Recruited from
general adult psychiatric services
Bouras et al. (2004)
People comorbid for mild intellectual disability and
schizophrenia spectrum psychosis. Recruited from a
specialist service for people with ID
Chaplin et al. (2006)
People with borderline intellectual impairment (or mild ID)
determined on basis of NART score. Recruited from
general adult psychiatric services
Study (year)
250
33.82
32.47
33.71
Overall
100.00
0
3.65
Standardised mean difference
Fig. 2 Forrest plot for data comparing negative symptoms experienced by people with schizophrenia with and without ID. The studies
of Chaplin et al. and Doody et al. used the SANS, while Bouras et al.
used the PANNS. Items on the SANS are: Affective flattening or
blunting (unchanging facial expression, decreased spontaneous movements, paucity of expressive gestures, poor eye contact, affective
nonresponsivity, lack of vocal inflections, global rating of affective
flattening, inappropriate affect); Alogia (poverty of speech, poverty of
content of speech, blocking, increased latency of response, global
rating of alogia), Avolition-apathy (grooming and hygiene, impersis-
tence at work or school, physical anergia, global rating of avolitionapathy); Anhedonia-asociality (recreational interests and activities,
sexual interest and activity, ability to feel intimacy and closeness,
relationship with friends and peers, global rating of asociality and
anhedonia); Attention (social inattentiveness, inattentiveness during
mental status testing, global rating of attention). Negative items on the
PANNS are: Blunted affect; Emotional withdrawal; Poor rapport;
Passive/apathetic social withdrawal; Difficulty in abstract thinking;
Lack of spontaneity and flow of conversation; Stereotyped thinking
251
252
Acknowledgements
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