Schizophrenia

General characteristic of a disease

Schizophrenia is the medical term used for designation of the whole group of mental disorders. On the basis of various symptoms of schizophrenia allocate several types of a disease. Each of them is characterized by disturbances of various expressiveness in behavior of the patient, his thinking and manifestation of emotions.

The main symptom of schizophrenia of any kind – the distorted perception of reality by the person causing serious changes of the personality. These manifestations usually have incidental character, but the frequency of aggravations at each patient is individual. So-called psychotic episodes sometimes occur some time in life of the patient with schizophrenia, and all rest of the time he is in a condition of remission. Prior to another recurrence it can make an impression of quite healthy person without manifestation of any symptoms of schizophrenia.

Schizophrenia reasons

Schizophrenia – quite widespread disease diagnosed on average for 1% of inhabitants of Earth. The first psychotic episode in life of the patient with schizophrenia occurs, as a rule, aged up to 30 years. And, precursory symptoms of schizophrenia at men are most often shown up to 20 years. And, on the contrary, this disease is seldom diagnosed for women at teenage age. The peak of expressiveness of symptoms of schizophrenia at women – 25-30 years.

The reliable reason of development of schizophrenia is unknown. For most of researchers of this serious mental disorder the fact that errors of education or weakness of character of the patient with schizophrenia cannot cause a disease is indisputable. For today the most recognized is the theory of complex character of an etiology of a disease. A noticeable role in development of schizophrenia is played by a genetic factor. Patients with schizophrenia meet in families with genetic predisposition to a disease more often.

The factor of the broken chemical balance in processes of a brain, and also possible anatomic pathologies of body has the right for existence. Some scientists quite assume that as the trigger mechanism for frustration of mentality at patients with schizophrenia certain conditions of the environment could serve, for example, a situation of a severe stress.

Schizophrenia symptoms

Difficult set of the most different symptoms of schizophrenia can be divided into 3 big groups conditionally. So-called positive symptoms of schizophrenia concern to the first of them. In this context the word "positive" is used not in good value, and designates existence at the patient with schizophrenia of signs, is made atypical for the healthy person. Rank the crazy ideas and hallucinations as positive or psychotic symptoms of schizophrenia.

The second group is formed by the disorganized schizophrenia symptoms. They are shown in inability of the person to think logically and to react adequately to the events. At patients with schizophrenia, for example, the incoherent speech, bystry transitions from one chaotic idea to another. Patients with the disorganized symptoms move at slow rate, constantly forget or lose things, is long repeat the same movements.

And the last third group is formed by negative symptoms of schizophrenia. They are expressed in lack of emotions at the patient with schizophrenia or in inadequate manifestation of these emotions concerning a situation, for example, laughter instead of crying. Patients with schizophrenia have no interest in life. Sudden changeability of mood and a canonicity is quite often characteristic of them. Its essence in long ability of the patient with schizophrenia to stay in a condition of an immovability.

Diagnosis of schizophrenia

Specific laboratory tests for diagnosis of schizophrenia do not exist. Traditional methods of a research of composition of blood, urine, X-ray and ultrasonography of bodies are used for this purpose to exclude probability of the organic reasons causing display of schizophrenia. If the therapist does not manage to find any physical factors provoking symptoms of schizophrenia, then he directs the patient to the narrow specialist - the psychiatrist. Further diagnosis of a disease takes place in a format of a conversation with the patient and observations of his behavior.

Treatment of schizophrenia

Full healing from schizophrenia is impossible. There is only a complex maintenance therapy of a disease. Its purpose are reduction of expressiveness of symptoms of schizophrenia and decrease in probability of a recurrence of a psychotic episode. Medicinal treatment of schizophrenia consists in purpose of antipsychotic drugs. They successfully cope with many symptoms of schizophrenia: hallucinations, crazy ideas, etc.

Psychosocial treatment of schizophrenia represents set of techniques for overcoming problems of the patient in the field of social adaptation. Precursory symptoms of a disease learn to distinguish the patient with schizophrenia and in process of forces to control their manifestation. Within psychosocial treatment of schizophrenia the doctor and the patient through joint efforts develop the action plan on a case of a recurrence of a psychotic episode. Sessions of individual and family psychotherapy are at the same time held.

Treatment of schizophrenia - lifelong also includes also rehabilitation of the patient, his development of social skills and professional abilities to help the patient with schizophrenia as far as it is possible, to live in society. Hospitalization of the patient with schizophrenia is only carried out to medical institutions of the closed type if the person poses a threat for people around and also if it is capable to do harm to the health or life.

Traditionally treatment of schizophrenia takes place on an outpatient basis with the individual schedule of administration of drugs, sessions of psychological consultations etc. The most aggressive methods - electroconvulsive therapy and a psychosurgery - are applied only when useless are all other already tried ways of treatment of schizophrenia.

Whether patients with schizophrenia are dangerous?

Most of patients with this type of a mental disorder are not dangerous to people around. Patients with schizophrenia are inclined to self-isolation from society, to an alcohol abuse, formation of drug addiction. Most often their behavior is dangerous to own life. A suicide – one of the most common causes of early death of patients with schizophrenia. However the minimum percent of patients with an agressive behavior forces the relevant medical institutions to keep strict account of all patients with schizophrenia and to apply in case of need forced hospitalization.