Schizophrenia is a severe mental illness that influences patients process of thinking and emotional responsiveness.

Schizophrenia manifests as auditory hallucinations, paranoid and bizarre delusions, disorganized speech and thinking and social dysfunction. There are five sub-classifications of schizophrenia and undifferentiated type schizophrenia is one among them. Undifferentiated schizophrenia is a mental disorder (actually, it is a combination of mental conditions) which affect the social, behavioral, emotional and mental functioning of a person. It is also referred to as medical clinical syndrome. People suffering from this disorder are unable to distinguish between reality and their minds making. Undifferentiated schizophrenia is a subtype of schizophrenia whose traits and symptoms- in the patients- lack enough traits or consistence to fall under any of the other specific subcategories. The other subtypes of schizophrenia are: o Paranoid- this type is characterized by a consistent framework of thoughts and behavior which exhibit that the person feels (delusions) they are at risk- others want to hurt them- or that they are more important than anybody else and invincible Disorganized- delusional thoughts, behavior and emotions are not consistent or organized and may be totally inappropriate for situations at hand Catatonic- this subtype is characterized by weird and uncontrolled movements Residual- a patient is said to be a residual schizophrenic when they have previously suffered from a serious bout of schizophrenia, yet they currently seem normal

o o o

Symptoms of undifferentiated schizophrenia According to the DSM, individuals with undifferentiated schizophrenia must exhibit symptoms for a month or more that meet criterion A for schizophrenia. Criterion A is comprised of the following. Two or more of the following symptoms are present: o o Hallucinations (e.g. hearing or seeing things that arent actually there) Delusions (false, firmly held beliefs (despite evidence to the contrary) that arent typically held by others e.g. believing that one has superhuman powers or is constantly being watched via hidden cameras everywhere) Disorganized speech (e.g. gibberish or constantly jumping from one topic to another) Catatonic or extremely disorganized behavior (e.g. being in a stupor, staying in a rigid position for a long period of time, echolalia, or wearing several layers of clothes on a hot summer day) Negative symptoms (e.g. little or no display of emotion, inability to do simple, day-to-day tasks, very brief and empty responses to questions)

o o o

There are two exceptions to the above: 1. The presence of only one of the above symptoms is sufficient if it consists of bizarre delusions (meaning something that is completely beyond the realm of possibility), hearing voices that are conversing with each other, or hearing a voice (or voices) that is constantly commenting on the persons thoughts or actions.

2. If the symptoms subside due to successful treatment, the timeframe can be less than one month.

Diagnosis Undifferentiated schizophrenia is hard to diagnose since exhibited traits may keep changing; from patient to patient and in one patient, from time to time. The symptoms may also vary in the duration they last and might even occur together. Since diagnosis of most mental illnesses- schizophrenia being one of them, is based on the personal reports- of what the patient is experiencing- or reports from people who are close to the patient, the inconsistency and unclear symptoms make it hard to diagnose. It is in this respect, therefore, that its diagnosis is done through ruling out the other specific types (whose symptoms are more clear and distinguishable). Causes Undifferentiated schizophrenia can be triggered by a number of things. People who are vulnerable to it, as with other types of schizophrenia include:

Those suffering from diseases that are likely to affect the functioning of the brain; including brain tumor Those who have been taking drugs (hallucinogens, stimuli and depressants) which interfere with the chemical composition of the brain; thus altering cognitive functioning People who have been traumatized by death, rape etc Those whose social environment is stressing and they get frustrated at not being able to meet the set goals appropriately etc