Despite the fact that follow-up studies on schizophrenia have rarely included an adequate assessment of clinical condition of the patient at the time of discharge, degree of remission on release is generally felt to be related to subsequent outcome. The partially remitted patient is considered more likely to relapse than the more fully recovered patient.
In one recent study of 156 discharged chronic schizophrenic patients, condition at the time of release was reported to be related to subsequent social adjustment.1 However, precise information as to clinical state at the time of discharge was unavailable. Symptom improvement was estimated, retroactively, on whether the patient was discharged "against medical advice," "recovered," "relieved," or "not improved," and on the basis of the patient's adjustment prior to readmission or at the time of a oneyear follow-up evaluation.
The present study is an attempt to more objectively define