SPECIAL REPORT
Comment by Dr. Ofer Agid
Comment by Dr. Ashok Malla
The management of schizophrenia has traditionally focussed on a reduction in positive and negative symptoms with antipsychotic agents. However, this narrow focus does not adequately address other features that are important to patients and caregivers, such as social and occupational functioning, involvement in productive activities, and an ability to live independently. When the European Group on Functional Outcomes and Remission in Schizophrenia (EGOFORS) examined how psychiatrists, patients and caregivers viewed symptomatic remission, only 18% agreed in their assessment (Karow et al. Eur Psychiatry 2012;27:426-431). For clinicians, remission was largely defined as improvement in PANSS scores; whereas for patients, remission was characterized by good subjective well-being, and for caregivers it was a combination of improved well-being and symptom reduction.