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Schizophrenia: developmental, degenerative or both?

  • Conference paper
Search for the Causes of Schizophrenia

Abstract

The fundamental cause or causes of schizophrenia are unknown in a majority of cases. As accepted by most neurologists, developmental disorders include a diversity of developmental malformations and diseases acquired during the intrauterine period of life (Adams and Victor 1977). In contrast degenerative disorders include “an inexplicable decline from a previous level of normalcy to a lower level of function” (Adams and Victor 1977). A change in our understanding of the etiology of many genetic, metabolic, toxic, and nutritional disorders has changed the definition of some disorders formerly deemed degenerative to one or more of these designations. What about schizophrenia? Clinical and pharmacological data suggest that schizophrenia results from an imbalance between specific excitatory and inhibitory systems in specific brain regions that occurs most frequently but not exclusively during adolescence and young adult life (Stevens 2002).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Oregon Health Sciences University, Portland, Oregon, USA

    Janice R. Stevens

Authors
  1. Janice R. Stevens
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department and Institute of Psychiatry - Faculty of Medicine, University of São Paulo, 3671, 05403-010, São Paulo - SP, Brazil

    Wagner F. Gattaz M.D. (Full Professor of Psychiatry & Director of the Laboratory of Neuroscience) (Full Professor of Psychiatry & Director of the Laboratory of Neuroscience)

  2. University of Heidelberg, 122120, 68072, Mannheim, Germany

    Heinz Häfner (Prof.em.of Psychiatry, Director em., Head) (Prof.em.of Psychiatry, Director em., Head)

  3. Central Institute of Mental Health, 122120, 68072, Mannheim, Germany

    Heinz Häfner (Prof.em.of Psychiatry, Director em., Head) (Prof.em.of Psychiatry, Director em., Head)

  4. Schizophrenia Research Unit, 122120, 68072, Mannheim, Germany

    Heinz Häfner (Prof.em.of Psychiatry, Director em., Head) (Prof.em.of Psychiatry, Director em., Head)

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© 2004 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg

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Stevens, J.R. (2004). Schizophrenia: developmental, degenerative or both?. In: Gattaz, W.F., Häfner, H. (eds) Search for the Causes of Schizophrenia. Steinkopff, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-7985-1953-4_24

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-7985-1953-4_24

  • Publisher Name: Steinkopff, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-642-62331-8

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-7985-1953-4

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

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