The sensory processing patterns of individuals with schizophrenia with comorbid substance use disorder

ABSTRACT

Background

The most common comorbidity in individuals with schizophrenia is substance use disorder. Sensory processing disorders seen in individuals with schizophrenia may cause substance use. This study aimed to examine the sensory processing patterns of individuals with schizophrenia with substance use disorder. Another aim of the study was to examine the relationship between the sensory patterns and the symptoms of schizophrenia.

Methods

The study included 62 patients with schizophrenia with substance use disorders and 57 patients with schizophrenia who didn't use substances. The sensory processing patterns of the participants were evaluated using the self- diagnostic Adolescent/ Adult Sensory Profile. The symptoms of schizophrenia of the participants were evaluated using the Positive and Negative Symptom Scale.

Results

Substance use groups’ sensory processing patterns were significantly different from the schizophrenia without substance use (p < .001). Sensory variables didn’t reveal a significant relationship with gender and substance use severity (p > .05). There was a correlation between sensory processing patterns of individuals with schizophrenia with substance use and positive symptoms (p < .05).

Conclusions

Further investigation of the factors causing sensory processing disorders caused by substance use in schizophrenia patients will help occupational therapists devise intervention strategies in the treatment of factors causing substance use.

KEYWORDS:

• Substance-use
• schizophrenia
• sensory process
• sensory threshold
• comorbidity

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank all the individuals who participated in this study.

Availability of data and material

The datasets created and/or analyzed during the current study are not publicly available due to [participants’ deprivation of personal information], but are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.

Consent to participate

All respondents signed informed consent forms for participation.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Declarations

The authors confirm that there is no conflict of interest.

Ethics approval

The study was approved by the local institutional ethical board (Hacettepe University Non-Interventional Clinical Research Ethics Committee) and it was examined by the ministry of health and were found in accordance with the regulation (File number: GO 19/972), dated November 5 2019.

All the procedures performed were in accordance with the ethical standards of the national research standards and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments. Informed consent was obtained from all the individual participants included in the study

Statement of contributorship

All authors contributed to the development of the study methodology, data collection and analysis. All authors participated in writing, reviewing and editing the manuscript, and approved the final version.

Additional information

Funding

This research received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial or not-for-profit sectors.