Negative symptoms in patients with non schizophrenic psychiatric disorders

INTRODUCTION: The presence of negative symptoms (NS) in different clinical entities other than schizophrenia, with a dimensional approach of negative symptoms, was considered in this work. OBJECTIVES: Determine the presence and distribution of NS, in a population of patients with non schizophrenic psychiatric disorders attending ambulatory treatment at public hospitals. METHODS: Patients with define DSM IV diagnosis criteria for different disorders; affective, alimentary, substance abuse, anxiety, personality disorders and patients with ILAE diagnoses criteria for temporal lobe epilepsy were included. All patients underwent the subscale PANNS for negative symptoms of schizophrenia. Student T test was calculated to determine the differences of frequency for NS among psychiatric disorders. RESULTS: 106 patients were included; 60 women, 46 men, 38 years +/- 12.1. The 90% of patients have a low score of NS. Media 11.6, Max/min 9.38 -14.29. Emotional withdrawal and passive social withdrawal were more frequent in alimentary disorders than in affective disorder and than in epilepsy. Emotional withdrawal was more frequent in substance disorders than epilepsy. CONCLUSIONS: According this study, negative symptoms are present in a low to moderate intensity in non schizophrenic psychiatry entities and in the temporal lobe epilepsy.