Schizophrenia is a lifelong and severe mental illness that interferes with a person’s ability to think clearly, manage their emotions, and interpret the world around them. The typical age of onset for schizophrenia is between the late teens and early 30s. Generally, it appears in males on the earlier end of that time spectrum, and on the later end in females. Although far less common, early-onset schizophrenia can appear in children under the age of 13, and late-onset schizophrenia can appear in adults over age 45. It was once believed that schizophrenia gets worse with age, but recent research suggests that while some symptoms will get worse, others will remain stable, and some symptoms may actually improve.
Schizophrenia symptoms
The symptoms of schizophrenia fall into three main categories:
- Positive symptoms
The presence of altered perceptions, including hallucinations, delusions, and disorganized thinking.
- Negative symptoms
The absence of a healthy mind state, including diminished motivation, affectation, emotional intensity, feelings of pleasure, or interest in life.
- Cognitive symptoms
Cognitive working memory dysfunction, attention deficits, and problems with processing information.
Every person who suffers from schizophrenia has their own particular set of symptoms. These symptoms can also change over the course of an individual’s lifetime. There is no cure for schizophrenia and the symptoms won’t go away on their own, but it is treatable and manageable with medications and psychotherapy. In fact, it’s schizophrenia treatment, rather than age that will have the biggest impact on a person’s ability to live a healthy productive life.
Age and schizophrenia
For a long time, it was commonly understood that schizophrenia advanced with age. Recent research shows that this is not always the case. Some notable findings include:
- Older people with schizophrenia tend to have fewer and less severe positive symptoms than younger people
- Negative symptoms typically persist into late life.
- People with late-onset schizophrenia usually require lower doses of antipsychotic medication than people with early-onset schizophrenia
- Although people with schizophrenia have a lower baseline of neurocognitive functioning than the general population, their risk of age-progressive decline is no greater than those who do not suffer from schizophrenia.
- Medical comorbidity is relatively high in older people with schizophrenia. Heart diseases, stroke, diabetes and lung disease are higher in older people with schizophrenia than in those who are not afflicted with schizophrenia.
These findings are extremely important because they help us understand more about the disease, how it works, how it progresses, and what is needed to treat those who have it.
When left untreated, schizophrenia often leads to a further decline of mental health and an increased risk of brain damage, liver disease, heart disease, and other serious medical conditions. When schizophrenia treatment starts early and remains consistent, however, it is possible to manage the symptoms and optimize health and quality of life. Research is crucial to furthering our understanding of schizophrenia and developing effective treatments that provide relief to those who need it most.
Participate in a schizophrenia research study tod
At Synergy Research Centers in San Diego, we are currently enrolling for a number of schizophrenia research studies. If you or someone you know has been diagnosed with schizophrenia, you may qualify. Eligible participants must be between 17 and 70 years of age. Studies are both inpatient and outpatient and range in duration from 8 weeks to a year. For more information, give us a call at (888) 539-0282 or fill out our contact form today.