Sinistrality in schizophrenia.

Unlabelled: Sinistrality characterized by an excess of non-right handedness has been reported in schizophrenic patients. Two factors, sex and kind of evaluation of handedness have contributed to major discrepancies across studies.
Aim: The hypothesis tested was that schizophrenic patients show a sinistral shift in handedness compared to controls taking into account the sex and using a continuum scoring system for evaluating handedness.
Methods: Seventy-three (73.1% males) schizophrenic patients (DSMIV) and 81 (64.2% males) controls were evaluated with the Edinburgh Handedness Inventory (EHI [Neuropsychologia, 9 (1971) 97]).
Results: The EHI score mean difference between patients with schizophrenia and control group was not significant when sex was taken into account.
Conclusion: Schizophrenic patients taken as a whole did not show a sinistral shift in handedness even if the sex and the continuum score for handedness were considered.