title: Spatial working memory deficits and clinical symptoms in schizophrenia: a 4-month follow-up study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Our goal was to examine spatial working memory function in relation to clinical symptoms of schizophrenia over a period of 4 months.
  
  
  METHODS
  We assessed spatial working memory, spatial detection and clinical symptoms in 34 acutely psychotic schizophrenia patients within the first 2 weeks of hospitalization, and 4 months later. Spatial working memory was assessed by a delayed response task. A spatial control task was included to rule out simple sensorimotor deficits. Positive and negative symptoms were assessed by the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS). Thirty-nine matched normal control subjects were also examined on the same tasks over the same period.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Patients showed deficits in working memory, but they performed well on the spatial control task. Both positive and negative symptoms improved at the 4-month follow up. Spatial working memory also improved over time but there was still a significant deficit at the follow-up session.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These results indicate that both symptoms and spatial working memory improved 4 months after the initial hospitalization but spatial working memory, hypothesized to be mediated by the dorsolateral prefrontal system, did not normalize. Thus, spatial working memory deficit may be a stable marker for schizophrenia.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois 60208-2710, USA.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Park
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Püschel
authors.forename: B H
authors.initials: BH
authors.lastname: Sauter
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Rentsch
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Hell
mesh_terms: D000208:Acute Disease; D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008569:Memory Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology*; D010468:Perceptual Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology*; D017397:Prefrontal Cortex / Q000378:metabolism / Q000503:physiopathology; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D012559:Schizophrenia / Q000150:complications* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000503:physiopathology; D012565:Schizophrenic Psychology; D013028:Space Perception / Q000502:physiology*; D013997:Time Factors