Conditions: Schizophrenia Schizoaffective Disorder
Allocation: RANDOMIZED | Intervention model: PARALLEL
Enrollment: 104
Healthy volunteers: no

Brief summary:
This study is based on the hypothesis that by increasing N-methyl-D-aspartic acid (NMDA) receptor function in the brain and thereby increasing the capacity of the brain to both form new connections and strengthen existing connections, schizophrenic patients may derive both greater and sustained benefit from cognitive retraining.

Detailed description:
Patients with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder who are currently receiving antipsychotic medication will be randomly assigned in a double-blind manner to receive either D-serine (30 mg/kg) or placebo in addition to cognitive rehabilitation or a non-interactive placebo for 12 weeks.

Arms:
arm 1: D-serine/control arm 2: D-serine/cog rehab arm 3: Placebo/control arm 4: Placebo/cog rehab

Interventions: intervention 1: D-serine intervention 2: Cognitive Retraining (CRT) intervention 3: Placebo intervention 4: Cognitive Retraining Placebo
Intervention descriptions: intervention 1: D-serine (30 mg/kg) intervention 2: Cognitive retraining therapy (CRT) intervention 3: Placebo D-serine Drug intervention 4: Cognitive retraining therapy (CRT) control

Protocol document: