By: Sheryl Acuna, Neil de Guzman, Joyce Hu, Andy Kim, Austin Harcarik

A.Genes and environment a. According to experts, schizophrenia is caused by many factors. b. Schizophrenia runs in families. c. Illness is present in one percent of the general population. People who have first and second-degree relatives with schizophrenia are more likely to develop the disorder then the general population. d. Scientists suppose that numerous genes are related to a greater risk of schizophrenia. No gene, however, causes the disease by itself. e. Contemporary studies propose that schizophrenia may occur in part when a certain gene that is important to producing significant brain chemicals malfunctions. f. Interactions between genes and the environment are essential for schizophrenia to develop. g. Environmental factors that can be involved include exposure to viruses or malnutrition before birth, problems before birth, and other unknown psychosocial factors.

B. Different brain chemistry and structure a. An imbalance in the chemical reactions of the brain involving the neurotransmitters dopamine and glutamate, and potentially others, plays a role in schizophrenia. b. The appearance of the brain for those who have schizophrenia differ from those without the disorder. For example, people with schizophrenia have larger ventricles.

This is a comparison of an MRI scan of 28-year old male identical twins. The image on the left is the twin without schizophrenia, and the image on the right is the twin with schizophrenia. As you can see, the twin with schizophrenia has enlarged brain ventricles. Identical twin studies on schizophrenia have made it apparent that there are a lot more factors than genetics that are involved.

Paranoid Schizophrenia Symptoms: Auditory hallucinations (Visual hallucinations are rare) Delusions (Example: Having belief that someone is plotting to kill them) Anxiety Anger Detachement Aggression and violence; Quarrels Condescension. Suicidal thoughts and behavior

Causes Genetics Viral infection - if the fetus is exposed to a viral infection Fetal malnutrition - if the fetus suffers from malnutrition during the mother's pregnancy Stress during early life - experts say that severe stress early on in life may be a contributory factor towards the development of schizophrenia. Childhood abuse or trauma Parental age when baby is born - older parents have a higher risk of having children who subsequently develop schizophrenia, compared to younger parents. Drugs Experts think that an imbalance of dopamine, serotonin, or other neurotransmitters. They also believe that this imbalance is most probably caused by your genes making you susceptible to the illness.

Treatment Drugs (Medication- antipsychotic drugs, antidepressant, an anti-anxiety drug, or a mood-stabilizing medication) Psychotherapy Hospitalization Electroconvulsive Therapy Vocational Skills Training

Disorganized Schizophrenia An extreme expression of the disorganization syndrome that is a part of the three-factor model of schizophrenia Characterized by prominent disorganized behavior and speech, as well as inappropriate emotion

Symptoms Unlike most types of schizophrenia, delusions and hallucinations are not the most prominent feature in disorganized schizophrenia, but they can still be present Inappropriate show of emotion (laughing in a situation not intended to be comical), or a complete lack of emotion Speech/behavioral dysfunction

Presentation Disorganized speech: – Slipping from one topic to the next, even in midsentence – Irrelevant responses to questions – Gibberish words – Stopping in the middle of sentences Caused by abnormal/illogical thought processes

Presentation Disorganized Behavior: – inability to initiate a goal-oriented task – in severe cases, inability to perform basic tasks like fixing a meal or showering – may dress bizarrely, such as wearing layers of clothes on a hot day – may neglect personal hygiene and have a strange appearance

Residual Schizophrenia experiences delusions, hearing voices, and/or showing some signs of disorganized speech, but the intensity has decreased significantly. The symptoms are no longer as severe as they were when he or she was acutely ill, but indicators of the disorder are still shown may have strange beliefs if hallucinations or delusions occur, he or she does not have strong emotions associated with it the rarest among the five different types of schizophrenia

Residual Schizophrenia (continued) diagnosed when a person had a period of at least 1 month but not more than six months during which the intensity and frequency of florid symptoms such as delusions and hallucinations have been minimal or reduced significantly diagnosed when a person shows prominent "negative symptoms" such as underactivity and poor eye contact and voice modulation absence of dementia or other organic brain disease or disorder that explains the negative impairments positive symptoms include talking in made-up language and disorganized thoughts and behaviors negative symptoms include lack of interest in daily life and withdrawing from others

When a person has symptoms of schizophrenia that are not adequately formed or distinct enough to allow classification of the illness into one of the other subtypes, that person is diagnosed with the undifferentiated subtype. The symptoms of a person can change at individual points in time, leading to uncertainty as to the correct subtype classification. Because undifferentiated schizophrenia relies on forming the slowly progressive development of the characteristic “negative” symptoms of schizophrenia, it is a difficult diagnosis to make with any certainty. The symptoms for undifferentiated schizophrenia meet Criterion A, but they do not meet for the Paranoid, Disorganized, or Catatonic Type.

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