Abstract
The duration of untreated psychosis (DUP) in patients with first-episode schizophrenia (FES) has attracted attention as a determinant of prognosis. We previously reported the DUP in Japan and its relationship with disease outcome. Efforts to shorten the DUP have led to optimal treatment within the critical period. Furthermore, interest in interventions during the prodromal phase, with the intention of preventing the onset of psychosis, has been increasing globally. In 2007, a specialized outpatient clinic (Youth Clinic) and day-care unit (“Il Bosco”) targeting individuals with an at-risk mental state (ARMS) and FES were established at the Toho University Omori Medical Center in Tokyo. These facilities provide a detailed assessment of clinical symptoms using the PRIME ScreenRevised (PS-R) and the Structured Interview for Prodromal Syndromes Japanese version (SIPS-J) . Because ARMS and FES patients exhibit cognitive impairments in a wide variety of domains that are obviously related to the patients’social functioning, cognitive training programs are provided at the Il Bosco facility in addition to psychosocial treatment that takes the younger ages of the patients into account.
