title: Sensory gating deficits and impaired quality of life in patients with schizophrenia: A preliminary study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  New determinants of quality of life in schizophrenia need to be identified. As sensory gating deficit is core impairment in schizophrenia, the present study hypothesized that sensory gating deficit is a determinant of impaired quality of life in schizophrenia. This study therefore investigated the relationship between sensory gating deficit and quality of life in patients with schizophrenia after adjusting for key confounding factors.
  
  
  METHODS
  Sensory gating was assessed with the auditory event-related potential method by measuring P50 amplitude changes in a double-click conditioning-testing procedure, perceptual impairments related to sensory gating deficit was assessed with the SGI questionnaire and quality of life was assessed with the SQoL 18 questionnaire in 39 patients with schizophrenia.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Patients with sensory gating deficit (n=14) had a lower subjective quality of life on the psychological well-being dimension evaluated with SQoL 18 questionnaire (p=0.008) compared to those without it (n=25). This result remained significant (B=-0.45, Wald=4.84, p=0.02) after taking into account 7 potential confounding factors (gender, age, level of education, duration of disorder, positive symptoms, depressive symptoms and anxiety symptoms). Poorer psychological well-being was related to a higher score on the SGI (rho=-0.40, p=0.01), in particular on the Distractibility dimension (rho=-0.47, p=0.001).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These findings suggest that sensory gating deficit may be a determinant of impaired quality of life in schizophrenia. Further studies are needed to address the causal relationship between sensory gating deficit, perceptual impairments, attentional deficit and impaired quality of life in schizophrenia in order to act more efficiently on the quality of life of patients with this disorder.
authors.affiliation: Services d'explorations fonctionnelles du système nerveux, Clinique du sommeil, CHU de Bordeaux, Place Amélie Raba-Leon, 33076 Bordeaux, France, jarthur.micoulaud@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Jean-Arthur
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Micoulaud-Franchi
authors.forename: Mélanie
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Faugere
authors.forename: Laurent
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Boyer
authors.forename: Michel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Cermolacce
authors.forename: Guillaume
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Fond
authors.forename: Raphaëlle
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Richieri
authors.forename: Jean
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Vion-Dury
authors.forename: Christophe
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Lancon
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002908:Chronic Disease; D005072:Evoked Potentials, Auditory / Q000502:physiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology*; D012559:Schizophrenia / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000503:physiopathology; D012565:Schizophrenic Psychology; D055139:Sensory Gating / Q000502:physiology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires