Comparative analysis of soft neurological signs in positive and negative subtype of schizophrenia.

BACKGROUND The objective of the study was to investigate neurological deficit in schizophrenia and to compare soft neurological signs in positive and negative subtypes of schizophrenia. SUBJECTS AND METHODS 66 patients with schizophrenia were evaluated with the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale to classify the subtype of schizophrenia: positive subtype (36 patients) and negative subtype (30 patients), all of which were entering into remission. To examine the neurological soft signs we compared scores on the Neurological Evaluation Scale (NES) for positive and negative subtype. RESULTS The negative subtype of schizophrenia showed significantly higher neurological soft signs in comparison to the positive subtype, with reduced functioning in the sensory integration and motor coordination subscale as well as the other subscale. CONCLUSION The main finding in this study indicates that patients with schizophrenia have neurological impairment, and that the negative subtype has significantly higher neurological impairment than the positive subtype. The results further support the significance of the soft neurological signs as a possible marker of different subtypes of schizophrenia.