Prodromal Psychosis: Early Identification and Characterization of the Prodromal Phase of Thought Disorders in Individuals at Risk

Contact name: Sabrina Lux

Phone: (310)-206-3466

Fax: (310)-794-9673

Email: slux@mednet.ucla.edu

Disorder: Prodromal Psychosis - Individuals at Risk

Geographic location: Los Angeles, CA

Other keywords: prodromal, psychosis, high risk,

Participant compensation: up to $290 at each assessment point (approx $10 per hour)

Time commitment required: 2 Year Study

Drug trial: No

Recruitment end date (approximate): December 1, 2006

Study criteria (i.e., age or gender requirements):
Individuals who come to CAPPS have a wide range of concerns they may wish to discuss, such as unusual thoughts and perceptions, increased depression, social anxiety, and greater difficulty with work, school, friends and family. CAPPS is looking for individuals between the ages of 12-35.
Recent changes that individuals that come to CAPPS have noticed include:
ß odd behavior
ß withdrawal from family, friends, and colleagues
ß subtle or pronounced suspiciousness
ß irrational ideas of special identity, abilities or grandeur
ß distorted or heightened perceptions of sights, sound and speech
ß hearing voices and/or seeing visions
ß poor eating habits, sleeping patterns, personal hygiene
ß uncanny feelings that the world around them has become strange and unreal or that their lives and events are controlled by outside forces
ß diminished or blunted emotional reactivity, or inappropriate emotional reactivity
ß difficulty concentrating or thinking clearly
ß trouble understanding what they hear and read
ß slipping behind and failing at work and/or school
Individuals who are experiencing difficulty functioning and who have a family member with a psychotic illness such as schizophrenia are also considered to be at risk and are encouraged to contact us.

Exclusion criteria:
1. IQ below 70
2. Presence of a serious neurological disorder
3. Current alcohol or drug dependence
4. Persons meeting diagnostic criteria for schizophrenia, schizophreniform disorder, or schizoaffective disorder

Brief description of study:
The Staglin Music Festival Center for the Assessment and Prevention of Prodromal States (CAPPS) is a research clinic associated with the departments of Psychology and Psychiatry & Biobehavioral Sciences at the University of California, Los Angeles.
Adolescence and young adulthood can be a time of great change as young people learn to meet new challenges. It can also become a time of distress and confusion when new experiences are overwhelming. CAPPS is a place for people worried about recent changes in their thoughts, perceptions, and feelings. These changes may be difficult to describe to others and are often a source of concern for young people and their families. At CAPPS, we provide clinical, psychosocial, and neuropsychological assessments, psychological and psychiatric treatment, and conduct other research aimed at early identification and prevention of these at-risk mental states.

Additional information:
Treatment is not a component of this study, however psychological and psychiatric services are provided to resesarch particpants at no cost.
The following are the procedures involved in this study: clinical evaluation (including interview and a psychiatric exam); neuropsychological testing; psychophysiological evaluation; brain imaging (MRI), psychosocial evaluation, the collection of a blood sample for future DNA testing, information processing, social perception assessment and an interview of one or more of your closest relatives concerning your birth and developmental history and the psychiatric status of your relatives. Your family members will also be asked to participate in the psychosocial and clinical evaluations. We will ask you to give them a flyer about this study. We will not contact your family members directly. You may participate in this study even if your family members do not. An abbreviated subset of these procedures will be repeated in the follow-up evaluations.