I rapporti tra i disturbi cognitivi e il funzionamento sociale nei pazienti affetti da schizofrenia

Despite advances in antipsychotic medications as well as psychological treatments, schizophrenia remains one of the most disabling disorders worldwide. Functional impairments in living, work, and leisure are essential diagnostic feature of schizophrenia, have a high prevalence and are a huge burden for patients as well as their family members. They are associated with high direct and indirect costs and are often present in periods of symptom remission. The majority of people with schizophrenia do not attain “normal” milestones in social functioning, productivity, residence, and self-care. A large body of cross-sectional as well as longitudinal studies provides empirical evidence for the link between neurocognition and functional outcome in schizophrenia. Cognitive deficits account for 20%-60% of the variance in functional outcome. This has prompted the search for other factors such as mediators that may enhance the understanding of the relationships between neurocognition and functional impairments.