Chantal Michel1,2, Iljana Käufeler1, Nina Schnyder1, Rahel Flückiger1, Michael Kaess1, Benno G. Schimmelmann1,3, Frauke Schultze-Lutter1,4; 1University Hospital of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland, 2Developmental Clinical Psychology Research Unit, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Geneva, Switzerland, 3University Hospital of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, University Hospital Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany, 4Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Medical Faculty, Heinrich-Heine-University, Düsseldorf, Germany
The understanding of factors related to poor subjective quality of life (sQoL) in clinical high risk (CHR) of psychosis is important for both research and clinic. We investigated sQoL together with health status and axis-I disorders in a general population sample with CHR symptoms of psychosis. In total, 2,683 individuals of the Swiss Canton Bern (16–40 years old, response rate of 63.4%) were interviewed by telephone for CHR symptoms using established psychosis-risk instruments (Schizophrenia Proneness Instrument, Adult version for basic symptoms and the Structured Interview for Prodromal Syndromes for ultra-high risk symptoms), for current axis-I problems/disorders using the Mini-International Neuropsychiatric Interview, for sQoL using the Brief Multidimensional Life Satisfaction Scale, and for health status using the EQ-5D. CHR symptoms were associated with current axis-I disorders (especially depressive and anxiety disorders), a lower general, intrinsic and health related sQoL as well as a lower evaluation of health status. For comorbid disorders and the general sQoL ultra-high risk symptoms were more important. Basic symptoms were more important for the intrinsic and health related sQoL and the evaluation of health status. Our findings confirm that CHR symptoms in the community are already a subjective burden for the individuals experiencing them and therefore are clinically relevant, even if the strict criteria for a CHR state are not fulfilled.
