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Abstract
Motor dysfunction is consistently reported but understudied in schizophrenia. It has been hypothesized that this abnormality may reflect a neuro-developmental disorder underlying this illness. The main goal of this study was to analyze movement patterns used by participants with schizophrenia and healthy controls during overarm throwing performance, using a markerless motion capture system. Thirteen schizophrenia patients and 16 healthy control patients performed the overarm throwing task in a markerless motion capture system. Participants were also examined for the presence of motor neurological soft signs (mNSS) using the Brief Motor Scale. Schizophrenia patients demonstrated a less developed movement pattern with low individualization of components compared to healthy controls. The schizophrenia group also displayed a higher incidence of mNSS. The presence of a less mature movement pattern can be an indicator of neuro-immaturity and a marker for atypical neurological development in schizophrenia. Our findings support the understanding of motor dysfunction as an intrinsic part of the disorder of schizophrenia.
Declaration of interest
The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper.
This study was supported by a grant from the FEDER via Programa Operacional Factores de Competitividade—COMPETE and from the Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia under FCOMP-01-0124-FEDER-022714 Project and Bolsas de Investigação Científica e Desenvolvimento—Instituto Politécnico do Porto/Banco Santander Project BInt-ICD/IPP-BST/LABRP/01/2013. These funding sources had no further role in study design; in the collection, analysis, and interpretation of data; in the writing of the report; or in the decision to submit this manuscript for publication.