Schizophrenia

SMART Text Messages Improved Self-Management in Schizophrenia Metabolic Health Pilot

by
SMART Text Messages Improved Self-Management in Schizophrenia Metabolic Health Pilot

TL;DR: A 2026 uncontrolled pilot study in BJPsych Open found that SMART, a personalized text-message program for metabolic health in people with schizophrenia spectrum disorders, improved patient activation, diabetes self-management confidence, health literacy, and recovery scores over 12 weeks, while objective cardiometabolic markers did not significantly change. Key Findings SMART reached a schizophrenia-risk group: Researchers …

Read more

Microglia CRISPR Screen Linked Schizophrenia Genes to Phagocytosis

by
Microglia CRISPR Screen Linked Schizophrenia Genes to Phagocytosis

TL;DR: A 2026 study in Neuropsychopharmacology used CRISPR gene editing in human microglia-like cells and found that several schizophrenia-linked genes changed phagocytosis, cell shape, and immune-transcription programs. Key Findings Schizophrenia-linked microglia genes were testable: The screen focused on 30 genes predicted from postmortem transcriptomic data and microglial biology to affect phagocytosis pathways. CYFIP1, MSR1, TREM2, …

Read more

Subcortical Connectivity Differed Across Schizophrenia, Bipolar Disorder, and Depression

by
Subcortical Connectivity Differed Across Schizophrenia, Bipolar Disorder, and Depression

TL;DR: A 2026 functional MRI (fMRI) study in Psychological Medicine found that schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and major depressive disorder shared some thalamus connectivity disruption, but each diagnosis showed a different subcortical network pattern across the thalamus, striatum, hippocampus, and amygdala. Key Findings 800-person MRI cohort: Researchers analyzed resting-state fMRI from 200 people with schizophrenia, 200 …

Read more

Cognitive Reserve in First-Episode Psychosis Linked to Genetics and Onset

by
Cognitive Reserve in First-Episode Psychosis Linked to Genetics and Onset

TL;DR: A 2026 study in Psychological Medicine found that cognitive reserve in non-affective first-episode psychosis was higher with greater genetic predisposition to educational attainment and lower with earlier psychosis onset or family history of psychosis. Key Findings 174 first-episode patients: Researchers analyzed people with non-affective first-episode psychosis, with a mean age of 25.5 years. Educational-attainment …

Read more

Early Clozapine in Schizophrenia Linked to Lower Relapse Risk

by
Early Clozapine in Schizophrenia Linked to Lower Relapse Risk

TL;DR: A 2026 review in Current Opinion in Psychiatry found that earlier clozapine use in schizophrenia, especially after early nonresponse or relapse, was linked to better relapse prevention and stronger response rates than repeated nonclozapine antipsychotic trials. Key Findings Relapse prevention improved: Switching to clozapine after first relapse was associated with a 34% lower subsequent …

Read more

Dopamine Synthesis Decreased After Psychotic Remission in Schizophrenia

by
Dopamine Synthesis Decreased After Psychotic Remission in Schizophrenia

TL;DR: A 2026 preprint in medRxiv used 18F-DOPA positron emission tomography (PET) to estimate dopamine synthesis and storage, and found that caudate dopamine synthesis decreased as schizophrenia patients moved from active psychosis into early psychotic remission. Key Findings Patient group: Researchers scanned 28 schizophrenia patients twice and compared them with 21 healthy controls scanned over …

Read more

Right OFC rTMS Improved Visuospatial Memory in First-Episode Schizophrenia

by
Right OFC rTMS Improved Visuospatial Memory in First-Episode Schizophrenia

TL;DR: A 2026 randomized study in Psychological Medicine found that right orbitofrontal cortex repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS), a noninvasive brain-stimulation method, improved visuospatial memory on the Brief Visuospatial Memory Test-Revised (BVMT) in people with first-episode schizophrenia. Key Findings The analysis included 90 patients: Researchers studied 48 people assigned to active rTMS and 42 assigned …

Read more

Six Weeks of Group Songwriting Reduced Paranoia and Shifted Pronoun Use in 20 Adults With Psychosis

by
Six Weeks of Group Songwriting Reduced Paranoia and Shifted Pronoun Use in 20 Adults With Psychosis

TL;DR: A 2026 longitudinal pilot study in Psychosis from Yale recruited 20 adults with schizophrenia or distressing auditory hallucinations into 6 weeks of group songwriting and found reduced paranoia in less-severely affected participants plus a shift from self-focused first-person pronouns toward plural pronouns. Key Findings Group songwriting recruited adults with psychosis symptoms: 20 participants aged …

Read more

MRI Brain Charts Predicted 10-Year Psychosis Outcomes

by
MRI Brain Charts Predicted 10-Year Psychosis Outcomes

TL;DR: A 2026 study in The British Journal of Psychiatry found that in first-episode psychosis, MRI deviations from age-matched brain norms at illness onset helped predict which patients would carry heavier symptom burdens and poorer functioning for years afterward. Key Findings 100,000-scan reference model: Researchers used a lifespan normative MRI model built on more than …

Read more

Insomnia and Mood Symptoms Were Central in Chronic Schizophrenia Network

by
Insomnia and Mood Symptoms Were Central in Chronic Schizophrenia Network

TL;DR: A 2026 network analysis study in European Archives of Psychiatry and Clinical Neuroscience found that insomnia was present in 18.3% and childhood trauma in 49.5% of patients, while daytime dysfunction and sleep-related distress were central nodes, while mood symptoms and difficulty falling asleep bridged domains. Key Findings Evidence map: a network analysis connecting childhood …

Read more

+ Load more