Prenatal Exposure to Maternal Infection and Executive Dysfunction in Adult Schizophrenia

Abstract

Prenatal infections previously associated with schizophrenia are related to impaired performance on the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test and Trails B. The pattern of results suggests that cognitive set-shifting ability may be particularly vulnerable to this gestational exposure. Further work is needed to elucidate the specificity of prenatal infection to these executive function measures and to examine correlates with neuroanatomic and neurophysiologic anomalies.