THYROID INDICES IN CHRONIC SCHIZOPHRENIA

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Abstract
Thyroid indices have been studied in a group of 28 chronic schizophrenic patients who were found to show 1) clinical manifestations of hypothyroidism in 28 per cent of the cases, 2) decreased I131 24-hour neck uptake in 93 per cent of the cases, 3) cerebro-spinal fluid protein elevated in 38 per cent of the patients (50 per cent had an abnormal colloidal gold curve), 4) protein-bound iodine, blood cholesterol, hemoglobin values, relaxation of the Achilles tendon reflex- all within normal limits. Eeg and ekg findings as well as cardiac measurements were within the limits of normality for a group of this age. A group of newly admitted first-admission schizophrenics showed an I131 24-hour neck uptake whose level was intermediate between that of the chronic schizophrenics and controls, both differences being at a significant level. The I131 24-hour neck uptake was found to correlate in this group of patients significantly with age but when these subjects were matched for age with a group of normal controls, a very significant difference was still apparent. The relationship of these findings to schizophrenia is briefly discussed.