The Influence of Familial Loading on the Course of Schizophrenic Symptoms and the Success of Psychoeducational Therapy

This prospective study examines the influence of familial loading on the course of schizophrenic illness and the extent to which this is modifiable by psychoeducational training as a form of psychotherapy. 182 schizophrenic patients enrolled in the study were allocated at random into four different treatment groups and one control group. 40% of the patients had mentally ill relatives, 20% with some form of schizophrenia. Patients attending the treatment group and those in the control group were examined before and immediately after psychoeducational training and at 2-year and 5-year follow-ups. Control group patients with mentally ill relatives displayed a significant increase in psychopathological symptoms and rehospitalization rate compared to those without. The psychoeducational training arrested or even improved the increase in psychopathological symptoms in patients with mentally ill relatives. Familial loading contributes substantially to a high rehospitalization rate and a poor outcome in schizophrenic patients. Psychoeducational interventions are an appropriate means of arresting this unfavorable development.