José Luis Antoñanzas

Semantics, pragmatics, and formal thought disorders in people with schizophrenia

Background: The aim of this study was to analyze how formal thought disorders (FTD) affect semantics and pragmatics in patients with schizophrenia. Methods: The sample comprised subjects with schizophrenia (n = 102) who met the criteria for the disorder according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th Edition Text Revision. In the research process, the following scales were used: Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) for psychopathology measurements; the Scale for the Assessment of Thought, Language, and Communication (TLC) for FTD, Word Accentuation Test (WAT), System for the Behavioral Evaluation of Social Skills (SECHS), the pragmatics section of the Objective Criteria Language Battery (BLOC-SR) and the verbal sections of the Wechsler Adults Intelligence Scale (WAIS) III, for assessment of semantics and pragmatics. Results: The results in the semantics and pragmatics sections were inferior to the average values obtained in the general population. Our data demonstrated that the more serious the FTD, the worse the performances in the Verbal-WAIS tests (particularly in its vocabulary, similarities, and comprehension sections), SECHS, and BLOC-SR, indicating that FTD affects semantics and pragmatics, although the results of the WAT indicated good premorbid language skills. Conclusion: The principal conclusion we can draw from this study is the evidence that in schizophrenia the superior level of language structure seems to be compromised, and that this level is related to semantics and pragmatics; when there is an alteration in this level, symptoms of FTD appear, with a wide-ranging relationship between both language and FTD. The second conclusion is that the subject’s language is affected by the disorder and rules out the possibility of a previous verbal impairment.

Comorbidity of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder with personality disorders in homeless people

BackgroundAttention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a condition that begins in childhood but can continue into adulthood, and may be the cause of many disadaptive behaviors, as in the case of homeless people, who often display a high incidence of personality disorders. The goal of this study is to analyze the comorbidity of ADHD with axis II disorders in a Spanish homeless population.ResultsThe outcomes show high comorbidity between these two kinds of disorders, and that the prevalence of axis II disorders is higher among people with ADHD than among the general population.ConclusionsFrom these results we can draw the conclusion that in homeless people ADHD in childhood continues into adulthood, when it is very often observed together with personality disorders. Finally, the implications of this study both for clinical practice and for future lines of research are discussed.