title: Symptomatic remission and patient quality of life in an observational study of schizophrenia: is there a relationship?
abstract: This analysis aimed to examine the association between remission and quality of life (QOL) in schizophrenia. In post-hoc analyses of the 3-year, prospective, observational Schizophrenia Outpatients Health Outcomes (SOHO) study, we compared the QOL of patients who achieved symptomatic and clinical remission with those who did not, and the factors associated. Symptomatic remission was defined as achieving a score of ≤3 on the Clinical Global Impression-Schizophrenia (CGI-SCH) scale, maintained for 6 months and without hospitalization. QOL was patient self-rated using the European-QOL. Of the 6516 patients analyzed, 38% were in symptomatic remission 12 months post-baseline and 52% at 36 months. Functional remission remained fairly constant from 12 months to 36 months (22.4% at both time points). At all visits from 12 to 36 months, patient QOL and social functioning were significantly higher for patients in symptomatic remission. QOL was higher in patients in functional remission. Patients with maintained symptomatic remission over the 3-year follow-up had a much greater improvement in QOL than patients with no symptomatic remission or symptomatic remission for part of the period. Factors associated with a better QOL also included paid employment, socially active, a higher CGI-SCH cognitive score, good compliance, and a better baseline QOL.
authors.affiliation: Parc Sanitari Sant Joan de Deu, CIBERSAM, Barcelona, Spain. Electronic address: jmharo@pssjd.org.
authors.forename: Josep M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Haro
authors.affiliation: Eli Lilly and Company, Windlesham, Surrey, UK.
authors.forename: Diego
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Novick
authors.affiliation: Eli Lilly and Company, Paris, France.
authors.forename: Elena
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Perrin
authors.affiliation: Parc Sanitari Sant Joan de Deu, CIBERSAM, Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: Jordan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Bertsch
authors.affiliation: Centre for the Economics of Mental Health, Institute of Psychiatry, London, UK; London School of Economics, London, UK.
authors.forename: Martin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Knapp
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D004651:Employment; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D010045:Outpatients; D010349:Patient Compliance; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology*; D012074:Remission Induction; D012559:Schizophrenia / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000628:therapy*; D012565:Schizophrenic Psychology
keywords: Observational study; Quality of life; Remission; Schizophrenia