Retrospective Study
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2024. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Psychiatry. Jun 19, 2024; 14(6): 884-893
Published online Jun 19, 2024. doi: 10.5498/wjp.v14.i6.884
Computerized cognitive remediation therapy on cognitive impairment and social function in patients with chronic schizophrenia
Jian-Jun Hu, Xi-Rong Sun, Shuang-Ming Ni, Yan Kong
Jian-Jun Hu, Xi-Rong Sun, Shuang-Ming Ni, Yan Kong, Department of Psychiatry, Shanghai Pudong New Area Mental Health Center (Mental Health Center of Tongji University, Shanghai Pudong New Area Psychological Counseling Center), Shanghai 200124, China
Co-first authors: Jian-Jun Hu and Xi-Rong Sun.
Author contributions: Hu JJ and Sun XR designed this study and analyzed the data; Kong Y conducted guiding work and critical review; Ni SM collected data and participated in the analysis; All authors approved the manuscript.
Supported by Shanghai Pudong New Area Science and Technology Development and Livelihood Research Special Fund Support Project, No. PKJ2023-Y80; and Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine Specialized Disease Diagnosis and Treatment Center Project, No. PDZY-2022-05-01.
Institutional review board statement: The study was reviewed and approved by the Institutional Review Board of the Shanghai Pudong New Area Mental Health Center, No. PDJWLL2023023.
Informed consent statement: The Institutional Review Board approved the exemption from informed consent.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All the authors report no relevant conflicts of interest for this article.
Data sharing statement: The data used in this study were obtained from the corresponding author upon request at ky_720@126.com.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: Https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Yan Kong, BSc, Nurse, Department of Psychiatry, Shanghai Pudong New Area Mental Health Center (Mental Health Center of Tongji University, Shanghai Pudong New Area Psychological Counseling Center), No. 165 Sanlin Road, Pudong New Area, Shanghai 200124, China. ky_720@126.com
Received: March 4, 2024
Revised: April 28, 2024
Accepted: May 20, 2024
Published online: June 19, 2024
Processing time: 107 Days and 4.9 Hours
Abstract
BACKGROUND

Patients with schizophrenia may have various disease manifestations, most of which gradually tend toward incurable chronic decline, leading to mental disability. The basic symptoms of the disease can impair social function, whereas long-term hospitalization produces hospitalization syndrome, causing serious damage to social function.

AIM

To investigate the effects of Computerized Cognitive Remediation Therapy (CCRT) on cognitive and social functioning in patients with chronic schizophrenia.

METHODS

A retrospective analysis of 120 patients with chronic schizophrenia in Shanghai Pudong New Area Mental Health Center was performed. They were divided into an intervention group (60 cases treated with CCRT combined with conventional medication) and a control group (60 cases treated with conventional medication). After treatment, effects on cognitive function and social roles were observed in both groups. The Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) was used to assess the patients' psychiatric symptoms. The Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST) was used to assess the patients' cognitive functioning, and the Social Functioning Scale for Psychiatric Inpatients (SSPI) was used to assess the social functioning of the inpatient psychiatric patients.

RESULTS

No significant differences were observed in the PANSS, WCST, and SSPI intergroup scores before treatment (P > 0.05). After 2, 4, and 6 wk of therapy, general psychopathological factors, positive symptoms, negative symptoms, and total PANSS scores of PANSS in the intervention group were lower than in the control group (P < 0.05). After 2, 4, and 6 wk of treatment, the number of false responses, number of persistent bugs, and total responses in the WCST were significantly lower in the intervention group than in the control group (P < 0.05), and the amount of completed classification was significantly higher than in the control group (P < 0.05). After 2, 4, and 6 wk of therapy, the SSPI scores were significantly greater than those of the controls (P < 0.05). After 6 wk of treatment, the efficacy rates of the control and intervention groups were 81.67% and 91.67%, respectively. The curative effect in the intervention group was significantly higher than that in the control group (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSION

CCRT can significantly improve cognitive function and social abilities in patients with chronic schizophrenia.

Keywords: Computerized cognitive correction therapy; Schizophrenia; Cognitive function; Social function; Psychopathological factors

Core Tip: Chronic schizophrenia is generally an unconscious disorder with obvious intellectual disabilities. Insidious onset, prolonged course, repeated aggravation or deterioration, and negative symptoms of mental illness are common manifestations of the disease. Cognitive function and social life ability are severely impaired. In this study, we investigated the effect of Computerized Cognitive Remediation Therapy on cognitive impairment and society using the Patient and Negative Syndrome Scale, Wisconsin Card Sorting Test, and Scale of Social Function in Psychosis Inpatients scores in 120 patients with chronic schizophrenia.