Journal of International Psychiatry

[Abstract] Objective To explore the mechanism of minocycline combined with risperidone in relieving negative symptoms and improving cognitive function in patients with early schizophrenia. Methods Eighty-six patients with early schizophrenia who were admitted to the hospital between August 2014 and July 2016 were selected as study subjects. According to the order of admission, the patients were numbered and were randomly divided into the observation group and the control group, 43 cases in each group. The control group were treated with risperidone and placebo while the observation group were treated with risperidone and minocycline. Both groups were treated for 16 weeks. The psychiatric symptoms were evaluated with negative symptom scale (SANS), positive symptom scale (SAPS) and positive and negative symptom scale (PANSS) before and after treatment, and the cognitive function was evaluated with cognitive test battery for schizophrenia (MCCB). The serum interleukin -1β (IL-1β), tumor necrosis factor α (TNF- α) and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) were determined, and the adverse reactions were observed. Results The effective rate of treatment in the observation group (86.0%) was higher than that in the control group (67.4%) (P<0.05). After treatment, the scores of SANS, SAPS and PANSS in the observation group [(32.19±1.22), (6.38±1.35), (38.41±1.06)] were significantly lower than those in the control group (P<0.05). After treatment, MCCB scores of the two groups were all increased, and the score of attention / vigilance in the observation group (1.99±0.65) was significantly higher than that in the control group (P<0.05). After treatment, the levels of serum IL-1β and TNF- α in the observation group [(5.30±0.12) pg/ml, (2.19±1.40) pg/ml] were lower than those in the control group, while the BDNF level [(24.19±1.06) ng/ml] was higher than that in the control group (P<0.05). There was no significant difference in the incidence of adverse reactions between the two groups (20.9% vs 18.6%) (P>0.05). Conclusion Minocycline combined with risperidone is effective in the treatment of early schizophrenia. It may relieve the negative symptoms and improve cognitive function by reducing IL-1β and TNF-α and increase BDNF level.

[Key words] Minocycline; Risperidone; Early schizophrenia; Negative symptoms; Cognitive function