Cigarette smoking: effects on cognitive functions and drug-induced parkinsonism in chronic schizophrenia.
Epidemiological studies suggest an apparent protective effect of cigarette smoking on the risk of Parkinson's disease. There is also a report suggesting that patients with Parkinson's disease who smoke are less likely to develop dementia. I investigated the relationship of smoking to the severity of cognitive functions and presence of drug-induced parkinsonism in a group of 111 neuroleptic-treated chronic institutionalized schizophrenic patients. Patients who smoked had significantly less cognitive impairment (p < .02) and a lower prevalence of drug-induced Parkinsonism (p < .02) compared to nonsmokers. These findings suggest that cigarette smoking may protect against the development of dementia and drug-induced Parkinsonism in schizophrenia.
Sandyk
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NeuroCommunication Research Laboratories, Danbury, CT 06811.
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002908:Chronic Disease; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000209:etiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010302:Parkinson Disease, Secondary; D012559:Schizophrenia / Q000150:complications*; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D012907:Smoking