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Brain Indicators of Altered Attention and Information Processing in Schizophrenic Patients

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 January 2018

K. Barrett*
Affiliation:
Department of Mental Health, University of Bristol, 39 St Michaels Hill, Bristol BS2 8DZ
W. C. McCallum
Affiliation:
Burden Neurological Institute, Bristol & University of Bristol
P. V. Pocock
Affiliation:
Burden Neurological Institute, Bristol
*
Correspondence

Abstract

Late components of brain event-related potentials reflect aspects of selective attention, stimulus evaluation, and possibly memory update mechanisms. Several of these components were measured during an auditory target detection task, performed by 20 schizophrenic and 20 normal subjects. Both the amplitude of those components and a more general late amplitude measure were significantly reduced in schizophrenics, for both target and non-target stimuli. One general late amplitude measure, from the scalp vertex, could alone correctly classify 85% of patients and 95% of controls. The source of these differences may lie in a protracted positive potential shift.

Type
Papers
Copyright
Copyright © 1986 The Royal College of Psychiatrists 

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