Neurotic symptoms in the postacute phase of schizophrenia.

To assess the presence and importance of neurotic and depressive symptoms in the posthospital phase of schizophrenia, two samples of schizophrenic and nonschizophrenic patients were studied. The first sample consisted of 278 chronic patients and the second sample consisted of 284 relatively early phase, less chronic, patients. The following results emerged. a) Surprisingly high levels of neurotic/depressive symptoms are found in both schizophrenic and nonschizophrenic patients during the posthospital phase. b) Nonschizophrenic patients experience an equal or greater degree of neurotic symptom discomfort than schizophrenics, and any differences do not reach statistically significant levels. c) Neurotic/depressive symptoms seems to be one key area in which schizophrenics do not function more poorly during the posthospital phase than nonschizophrenic patients. d) The results cut across different social classes, different institutional settings, and different levels of chronicity. These data suggest that neurotic and depressive symptoms may play a greater role in the posthospital functioning of both chronic and nonchronic psychiatric patients than has heretofore been recognized.