Abnormal infant neurodevelopment predicts schizophrenia spectrum disorders.
OBJECTIVE
The aim of this study was to detect infants who carry a schizophrenic genotype and study the development of schizophrenia spectrum disorders (SZSD) from birth.


BACKGROUND
In the 1940s, Bender described uneven maturation in childhood schizophrenics and in 1952 found this in the infant histories of 6 schizophrenic children.


METHODS
We tested a possible index for defective neural integration in infants termed "pandysmaturation" (PDM). This required retarded cranial growth plus retarded and erratic gross motor development on a single exam. Twelve offspring of hospitalized schizophrenic mothers and 12 infants in a "Well Baby Clinic," were examined 10 times between birth and 2 years of age. Psychiatric interviews and psychological testing were done at 10, 15, and 22 years of age, plus follow-up at 27-35 years of age.


RESULTS
Six infants had PDM at 2, 6, or 13 months of age. Five individuals have been blindly diagnosed (by KSK) as having lifetime SZSD; all 5 had PDM before 8 months. Chi-square one-tailed tests confirmed the predictions: (1) PDM was related to subsequent SZSD (chi(2) = 11.43; p < 0.0005); (2) schizophrenic mothers had more infants with PDM than nonschizophrenic mothers (chi(2) = 3.28; p < 0.05); and (3) schizophrenic mothers had more SZSD offspring than nonschizophrenic mothers (chi(2) = 6.39; p < 0.0125).


CONCLUSIONS
These first behavioral observations of aberrant neurodevelopment in pre- SZSD infants support the evidence of early neurodevelopmental disorder seen in studies of brain pathology in SZSD adults.
Fish
Barbara
B
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Neuropsychiatric Institute, University of California-Los Angeles, USA. bfish@ucla.edu
Kendler
Kenneth S
KS
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002648:Child; D002658:Developmental Disabilities / Q000235:genetics* / Q000523:psychology*; D005190:Family; D005260:Female; D005317:Fetal Growth Retardation / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D005838:Genotype; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D009420:Nervous System / Q000254:growth & development*; D009422:Nervous System Diseases / Q000150:complications / Q000235:genetics* / Q000523:psychology; D009460:Neurologic Examination; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D011247:Pregnancy; D011379:Prognosis; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D012559:Schizophrenia / Q000235:genetics*; D012561:Schizophrenia, Childhood / Q000235:genetics*; D012923:Social Class; D016896:Treatment Outcome