Relationship between Degree of Insight with Severity of Illness, Cognitive Dysfunction and Social Cognition: Building Block for Management in Schizophrenia

Introduction: Lack of insight has been observed in patients with schizophrenia and it has been recognized as a potential barrier to treatment adherence and a risk factor for a range of poorer outcomes. The factors for poor insight might include deficits in neurocognition, social cognition, illness severity. Objectives: Study was conducted to examine the relationship between degree of insight with severity of illness, cognitive functions and social cognition in patients with Schizophrenia. Methods: A cross - sectional, single assessment design was used to study 60 participants with a diagnosis of Schizophrenia as per International Classification of Diseases (ICD) - 10. Study was conducted at tertiary care hospital of northern part of the India and participants were administered PANSS, ITAQ, WCST, BSS, SOCRATIS tools. Results: One - sixth of the patients had reported complete insight. Significant cognitive dysfunctions were present in the category of fluency, set shifting, abstraction, intelligence and social cognition. No significant association was seen between levels of insight with neurocognitive functions and social cognition. Conclusion: Insight in patients of schizophrenia is not associated with any of the neuro - cognitive functions and social cognition.