Scaling properties in temporal patterns of schizophrenia

Investigations into the patterns of schizophrenia reveal evidence of scaling properties in temporal behaviour. This is shown in the spectral properties of mid-range and long-range (up to two years) daily recordings from a sample of patients drawn at the therapeutic dwelling SOTERIA (Ambühl et al., in: Springer Series in Synergetics, Vol. 58, eds. Tschacher et al. (Springer, Berlin, 1992) pp. 195–203 and references therein) of the Psychiatric University Hospital in Bern. The therapeutic setting is unique in that it tries to avoid treatment by medication. Power law behaviour has been found within fractal walk analysis and Fourier spectra for the daily fluctuations. A simple dynamic principle, based on a generic intermittency model, is put in relation to these time series thus predicting an additional scaling law for the distribution P(T) of time spans T between successive hospitalizations. Testing this hypothesis with our data shows only insignificant deviations. A possible role of this dynamic principle in the risk assignment of psychotic phases is explored with the help of an example.