Schizophrenia Research Trends

2Reiko Koide and Akira Tamaokapsychological, were compared between schizophrenic and non-schizophrenic groups. Instudy 3, the correlation between depression assessed by SDS and body image assessed bythe BIQ was examined. In these studies, 93 chronic schizophrenics, 177 normal adults,and 43 patients with anxiety disorders according to DSM-IV criteria, were examined. Instudies 4-5, the additional finding of Rorschach percepts concerning body image inschizophrenia was reported.ResultsSchizophrenics’ body image aberration proved to be independent of symptoms andmedication. It was also shown that the aberration proved to be limited to functionalimageries, and that the anatomical component remained intact. As to depression, aspecific link of body image, especially with functional imageries, with the depressioncharacteristic to schizophrenia was found.ConclusionAll these results showed that body image aberration in schizophrenics is not theresult of symptoms or effects of conventional neuroleptic medications, but they aregermane to schizophrenia, which is comprised of aberration mainly in functional bodyimageries. This body image deviation proved to be linked to some serious depressivesigns and symptoms in schizophrenia. The subsidiary findings, that is, the Rorschachpercepts as a mass of flesh quite often seen in schizophrenia, are congruent with the mainfindings that schizophrenic patients showed an anticipation of becoming unmovable.Keywords: body image, schizophrenia, symptom, insight, depression, perceptionPART I. INTRODUCTIONSchizophrenics’ Body Image Aberration: An OverviewSince the time of Kraepelin (1919) and Bleuler (1911/1950), schizophrenics’ deviantperceptions, feelings, and beliefs concerning their bodies have been described. In this section,the symptoms relevant to body image aberration that have been discussed for over the pasthalf century, as well as psychological measures that were developed to understand theseaberrations, are reviewed, to lead to the current status and future prospects for the study ofthe body image aberration in schizophrenia.(1) Symptoms Relevant to Body Image AberrationDisturbances of body experience in schizophrenic patients occur frequently. They havebeen observed as somatic delusions (McGlichrist & Cutting, 1995), coenaesthesis (Huber,1957/1971; Rohricht & Priebe, 1997, Schmoll & Koch, 1989; Schmoll, 1994), disturbancesof pain perception (Dworkin & Caligor, 1988 ; Rosenthal et al., 1990; Dworkin, 1994; Guieuet al., 1994; Lautenbacher & Krieg, 1994), out-of-body experiences (Blackmore, 1986;