Psychopathology structure of affective disturbances in patients with schizotypal disorder

Abstract

The study of the structural features of the psychopathological symptomatology of schizophrenic spectrum disorders remains one of the most urgent topics in modern psychiatry; schizotypal disorder deserves special attention in this context. In order to identify the structural characteristics of affective disturbances in patients with schizotypal disorder, during 2019-2020, aprospective study of 128 patients with schizotypal disorder who were on outpatient treatment was conducted. By using clinical-anamnestic, clinical-psychopathological, psychodiagnostic and statistical methods it was revealed, that affective pathology has a significant prevalence among patients with schizotypal disorder, in the vast majority of cases it is represented by unipolar depressive symptoms, the intensity of which varies in a continuum from moderate severity of manifestations to their complete absence; in a quarter of cases affective psychopathological symptoms have a wider spectrum and reach hypomanic states; the prevalence of manic symptoms in the clinical picture lids to a partial elimination of the underlying disease symptoms; the psychopathological content of the affective sphere in one third of the examined patients with schizotypal disorder is represented by specific changes in the form of reduced affect display.

Keywords

• schizophrenia
• schizotypal disorder
• affective pathology
• depression
• comorbidity