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document
Effects of single dose intranasal oxytocin on social cognition in schizophrenia . Deficits in social cognition are common in schizophrenia and predict poor community functioning . Given the current limitations of psychosocial treatments and the lack of pharmacological treatments for social cognitive deficits , the development of novel therapeutic agents could greatly enhance functional recovery in schizophrenia . This study evaluated whether a single dose of intranasal oxytocin acutely improves social cognitive functioning in schizophrenia . Twenty-three male veterans with schizophrenia completed baseline assessments of social cognition that were divided into lower-level ( facial affect perception , social perception , detection of lies ) and higher-level ( detection of sarcasm and deception , empathy ) processes . One week later , patients received the same battery after being randomized to a single dose of 40 IU intranasal oxytocin or placebo . Though the groups did not differ significantly on the social cognition composite score , oxytocin improved performance for the higher-level social cognitive tasks ( Cohen 's d=1.0 , p=0.045 ) . Subjects were unable to accurately guess which treatment they had received . The improvements found in higher-level social cognition encourage further studies into the therapeutic potential of oxytocin in schizophrenia .
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Intervention_Pharmacological
oxytocin
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Intervention_Pharmacological
oxytocin
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Intervention_Pharmacological
intranasal oxytocin
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Intervention_Control
placebo
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Outcome_Mental
social cognition
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Outcome_Mental
facial affect perception
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Outcome_Mental
social perception
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Outcome_Mental
detection of lies
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Outcome_Mental
detection of sarcasm and deception
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Outcome_Mental
empathy
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Outcome_Mental
social cognition composite score
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Outcome_Mental
oxytocin improved performance for the higher-level social cognitive tasks
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Outcome_Mental
higher-level social cognition
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Participant_Condition
schizophrenia
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Participant_Condition
schizophrenia
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Participant_Sample-size
Twenty-three
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Participant_Sex
male
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Participant_Condition
schizophrenia
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Participant_Condition
schizophrenia