Abstract
The clinical course of schizophrenia is characterized by recurrence and chronicity and has a large burden on society. Nevertheless, diagnosis of schizophrenia is based only on distinctive symptoms and the disease course. Near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) is a useful method for measuring changes in the hemoglobin concentration in the cortical surface area and reflects brain function. We measured NIRS four times during the clinical course in a patient with first-episode schizophrenia.A 17-year-old woman admitted to our hospital because of hallucinations, delusions and appetite loss. After treatment with low-dose antipsychotics, NIRS findings showed a prompt increase in the cerebral blood volume in the frontal region. On the basis of the clinical course of this patient, we introduce a new point of view, namely, that NIRS findings may be useful as a state marker that indicates the severity of schizophrenia in some cases.