by proldic » Sun Aug 07, 2005 9:09 pm
<br>From Science Daily 8/05:<br><br>Key research from the University of New South Wales (UNSW) could lead to the first early diagnostic tool for schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. <br><br> "At the moment we don't have any biological tests for these conditions," said one of the authors..."Our research could eventually lead to a simple...way to distinguish patients with schizophrenia from those suffering bipolar disorder..."<br> <br>"Auditory recovery cycle dysfunction in schizophrenia: A study using event-related potentials" has just been published in the international journal Psychiatry Research. <br><br>"Sixty percent of patients with schizophrenia have auditory hallucinations,"... <br><br>"So we decided to look at a particular brain wave-form... that can be found in these patients." <br><br>The researchers recorded the brain waves associated with pairs of sounds in 17 patients with schizophrenia. <br><br>Subjects heard the sounds through a set of headphones, while performing a visual distraction task...<br><br>"We were looking at what occurs about 100 milliseconds after the sounds were presented," said Nathan Clunas. "The distinctive pattern observed in healthy volunteers was disrupted in patients with schizophrenia. <br><br>"These findings may help us understand the problems patients with schizophrenia experience in focussing attention on everyday events,"... <br><br>Nathan Clunas' PhD research was supported by an Ian Scott Fellowship from the Australian Rotary Health Research Fund. <br><br><br><br> <br> <p></p><i></i>
