The NIMH-MATRICS Consensus Statement on Negative Symptoms

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Abstract
The impairments now called negative symptoms have long been noted as common features of schizophrenia, and the concept of negative symptoms itself has a long history. 1,2 Patients who exhibit significant negative symptoms have particularly poor function and quality of life, 3–8 and this aspect of schizophrenia has been proposed as a separate domain with distinctive pathophysiological and therapeutic implications since at least 1974. 9 Despite the attention these problems receive, no drug has received Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for an indication of negative symptoms, and available data indicate that second-generation antipsychotic medications have not met early hopes for a highly effective treatment for alleviation of negative symptoms. 10