Sustained attention in young people at high risk of psychosis does not predict transition to psychosis

The Continuous Performance Test - Identical Pairs (CPT-IP) version performance of an ultra high-risk group (UHR, N = 70) was compared with that of a healthy comparison group (NC, N = 51) and a first-episode psychosis group (FEP, N = 32). The UHR group exhibited performance deficits compared to the NC group and performed at a level similar to that of the FEP group. However, within the UHR group, those who developed psychosis within the timeframe of the study did not differ from those who did not develop psychosis on their CPT-IP performance. These results support sustained attention as an indicator of vulnerability to psychosis, but suggest that CPT-IP performance does not help to predict transition to psychosis in an ultra high-risk group.