There are different types of schizophrenia - because this disease is not always the same and can have different symptoms. There are, among others, her paranoid, hebephrenic or residual form. Interestingly, schizophrenia does not always come with hallucinations and delusions … What are some other differences between the different types of schizophrenia?
Schizophreniaone of those mental illnesses considered to be the most serious and serious. It is commonly associated with the occurrence of hallucinations and delusions in patients, but these are definitely not the only possible symptoms of schizophrenia. The disease is not the same in all patients - in some patients persecutory delusions predominate, in others episodes of stupor predominate, and in still other patients mood disorders are the most noticeable. It is for this reason that there are differenttypes of schizophrenia .
Types of schizophrenia: psychiatric classifications
The classification of schizophrenia described below is based on the current, inter alia, in Poland, classificationICD-10 . The second classification used by psychiatrists is the AmericanDSM . Its fifth version was released in 2013 and brought various changes, some of which concerned schizophrenia.
The American Psychiatric Association has decided inDSM-Vnot to distinguish between different types of schizophrenia. According to the organization, identifying a specific type of this disease does not influence the choice of the treatment provided to patients, nor does it allow to predict the response to the therapy in a given type of schizophrenia.
Types of schizophrenia
- paranoid schizophrenia
- hebephrenic schizophrenia
- catatonic schizophrenia
- simple schizophrenia
- residual schizophrenia
- undifferentiated schizophrenia
There is one more important point we need to mention before we discuss the above types of schizophrenia. When considering the types of schizophrenia, one should not forget about the divisionaccording to the age of onset . Schizophrenia is usually associated with an adult disease, but in reality it is not - it also occurs in children. In terms ofagein childrenthere are two types of schizophrenia that appear in the pediatric population.
The first isearly-onset schizophrenia(early onset schizophrenia, EOS), where it occurs before the patient is 18 years of age.
The second type is svery early onset chizophrenia(very early onset schizophrenia, VEOS), in which the first symptoms of schizophrenia appear before the child turns 13.
-
paranoid schizophrenia
Paranoid schizophreniais considered to bethe most common type of schizophrenia . The dominant problems in its course aredelusions and hallucinations . Delusions can be of a really different nature here, they are described as paranoid, because they are not systematized and do not form one coherent system.
Delusions are the most common in patients with paranoid schizophrenia:
- stalking
- book (referring)
- of jealousy
- unveiling
- impact
Another characteristic symptom of paranoid schizophrenia - hallucinations - most often occurs in the form ofauditory hallucinations . In this case, patients may perceive various stimuli, they can be both simple sounds and voices.VoicesThese voices are usually unpleasant for the patient, they may negatively comment on his appearance or order him to perform some actions.
The prevalence of paranoid schizophrenia among all psychotic disorders on the schizophrenia spectrum is significant, yet it is not always easy to diagnose this type of schizophrenia. This is due to the fact that patients do not have to disclose to the environment that they experience productive symptoms (i.e. hallucinations and delusions), and at the same time other possible symptoms of schizophrenia, such asaffective disordersormovement disorders , they do not have to be clearly noticeable.
-
hebephrenic schizophrenia
You could say thathebephrenic schizophreniais a problem that is essentially opposite to the above type of schizophrenia. In the course of this type of schizophrenia, delusions and hallucinations may be very mild or may even appear periodically.
In hebephrenic schizophrenia, the dominant problems areaffect disorders(e.g. in the form of its maladjustment) and atypical behaviors presented by patients. It is characteristic that the patients havetendency to be clowns , besides, they may appear in their behavior mannerisms, disorder and pointlessness . In the course of this type of schizophrenia, there may also be variousthinking disorders(e.g. in the form of significant distraction), which may lead to the fact that the patients' statements are very chaotic and incomprehensible to their environment.
Hebephrenic schizophrenia is usually diagnosedin young patients(typically between 15 and 25 years old). The diagnosis of this individual may be difficult - due to the fact that psychotic symptoms in this type of schizophrenia are sometimes insignificant, there is a need to differentiate hebephrenic schizophrenia with e.g. personality disorders or manic episodes.
-
catatonic schizophrenia
Wcatatonic schizophreniadominantpsychomotor drive disorders . Catatonic symptoms in this type of disease may, in a way, come from two completely different poles. Patients can fall intostupor , i.e. in a state in which they do not respond to stimuli or move (it should be emphasized that such a patient remains fully aware). The reverse of the stupor that can occur in catatonic schizophrenia is significantpsychomotor agitation .
Other symptoms characteristic of catatonic schizophrenia are:
- waxy flexibility(a symptom where a patient may have a part of his body, e.g. his arm, placed in a given position, and it will remain in that position for a long time time)
- negativity(unjustified resistance to executing any commands)
- freezing(sometimes for a very long time) in a strange, unusual position
Catatonic schizophrenia may also lead to impulse disorders, e.g. the patient may stop eating. Such a condition can be extremely serious and may even lead to athreat to the patient's life .
-
simple schizophrenia
Schizophrenia is called simple, but in fact often leads to various difficulties. In this type of schizophrenia, patients do not experience delusions or hallucinations.
The main features of simple schizophrenia arechanges in behaviorof patients, such as withdrawing into oneself or deteriorating school or professional functioning. Patients become apathetic, and they may show more and morebizarre and unusual behavior .
Problems with simple schizophrenia are related to the fact that, first of all, it is difficultrecognize, and secondly, some psychiatrists do not recognize the existence of this type of schizophrenia at all.
-
residual schizophrenia
Residual schizophreniais also known aschronic schizophrenia . In this case, patients are dominated bynegative symptoms of schizophrenia , such as:
- apathy
- psychomotor slowing down
- social withdrawal
- slowing down your thinking
Such symptoms can be of various severity - sometimes it is slight, however, the aforementioned ailments may have a significant negative impact on the daily functioning of patients.
It should be emphasized here that in the case of residual schizophrenia - unlike in the case of simple schizophrenia - patients may experience delusions and hallucinations at some stage (usually in the initial stage).
-
undifferentiated schizophrenia
In order to be able to talk about undifferentiated schizophrenia, the patient's symptoms must be consistent with the general criteria for diagnosing schizophrenia. At the same time, the symptoms of such patients are so varied that it is not possible to diagnose one specific type of schizophrenia.
Read also:
- Early symptoms of schizophrenia
- How is schizophrenia treated?
- Is schizophrenia hereditary?
- What are the symptoms of schizophrenia?
- Treatment of schizophrenia during pregnancy, breastfeeding and in young children