During the initial 1 to 2 years after illness onset, young individuals with schizophrenia (SZ) showed deficits in dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) activation and cognitive control, with developmental trajectories comparable to those of healthy controls (HCs), according to a recent study. This naturalistic, longitudinal, functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study included patients with recent-onset SZ and HCs aged 12 to 25 years enrolled in an ongoing study of cognition in recent-onset psychosis from October 13, 2004, through June 25, 2013. Participants completed clinical assessments and an established measure of cognitive control (the AX Continuous Performance Task) during fMRI at baseline and at 6-, 12-, and 24-month follow-up. Researchers found:

• Among the 180 participants (66.1% male; mean [SD] age at baseline, 19.2 [3.2] years), 87 patients with SZ (mean [SD] age, 19.6 [3.0] years) showed impaired performance compared with 93 HCs (mean [SD] age, 18.8 [3.4] years) across the age span.
• Patients with SZ showed reduced activation in the DLPFC and parietal cortex compared with HCs under conditions of high cognitive control at baseline.
• Antipsychotic medication, clinical symptoms, and global functioning were associated with SZ performance.