First-episode psychosis: How long does it last? A review of evolution and trajectory

Abstract

Study of first-episode psychosis (FEP), an episode of psychotic nature which manifests for the first time in an individual in the longitudinal continuum of his/her illness, has been study matter of research interest in recent years. A comprehensive review of the literature will help us understand the evolution and trajectory of this concept better. A literature review of available articles addressing the concept, phenomenology, evolution, identification, course, and outcome of FEP was done; the same was subsequently divided into broad topics for better clarity and analyzed. FEP constituted a clinical psychotic phenomenon with underlying significant heterogeneity in diagnosis, stability, course, and outcome. The study has attempted to view FEP both as horizontal spectrum across various diagnoses and longitudinally ranging from asymptomatic individual with unknown risk status to attenuated psychosis to multiple relapses/unremitting illness. Many risk and protective factors have been brought out with varying certainty ranging bio-psycho-social spectrum. Efforts have been made to calculate polygenic risk score based on genes involvement/sharing between various psychotic spectrum disorders; as well as biomarker panels to identify people at risk. FEP may prove to be an important concept to understand psychosis in general; without putting things into the diagnostic rubric. It may help understand multiple risk and protective factors for the course and outcome of psychotic illness and may clear the cloud to sharpen the evidence toward commonality and distinctiveness between various psychotic diagnoses in vogue for more comprehensive concept.

Keywords

• first-episode psychosis
• spectrum
• staging