Schizophrenic patients treated with clozapine or olanzapine perform better on theory of mind tasks than those treated with risperidone or typical antipsychotic medications

Schizophr Res. 2007 Aug;94(1-3):128-38. doi: 10.1016/j.schres.2007.04.010. Epub 2007 Jun 8.

Abstract

Theory of mind (ToM), the ability to attribute mental states to others, is associated with medial prefrontal cortical (mPFC) activity and is impaired in schizophrenia. Olanzapine or clozapine but not typical antipsychotics or risperidone preferentially affect c-fos expression in mPFC in animals. We tested the hypothesis that schizophrenic patients treated with different antipsychotics would perform differently on ToM tasks. Groups receiving Typicals (n=23), Clozapine (n=18), Olanzapine (n=20) or Risperidone (n=23) and a Control group of healthy volunteers (n=24) were matched for age, gender, handedness and education. ToM functioning was assessed with picture sequence, second-order belief and faux-pas tests. Schizophrenic groups performed similarly to controls on non-ToM conditions. The Olanzapine and Clozapine groups performed similarly to Controls on ToM tasks. The Typicals and Risperidone groups performed worse than the other groups on ToM tasks. We concluded that ToM performance of schizophrenic patients is influenced by the antipsychotic they are taking. Our results suggest that olanzapine or clozapine but not typicals or risperidone may improve or protect ToM ability.

Publication types

  • Comparative Study
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Antipsychotic Agents / pharmacology*
  • Antipsychotic Agents / therapeutic use*
  • Benzodiazepines / pharmacology
  • Benzodiazepines / therapeutic use
  • Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale
  • Clozapine / pharmacology*
  • Clozapine / therapeutic use*
  • Cognition / drug effects*
  • Cognition Disorders / diagnosis
  • Cognition Disorders / epidemiology
  • Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders
  • Drug Prescriptions / statistics & numerical data
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Neuropsychological Tests
  • Olanzapine
  • Risperidone / pharmacology*
  • Risperidone / therapeutic use*
  • Schizophrenia / diagnosis
  • Schizophrenia / drug therapy*
  • Schizophrenia / epidemiology
  • Severity of Illness Index

Substances

  • Antipsychotic Agents
  • Benzodiazepines
  • Clozapine
  • Risperidone
  • Olanzapine