The Longitudinal Youth at Risk Study (LYRIKS) — An Asian UHR perspective

Numerous studies have been published on the psychosis prodrome and have explored a wide array of its many aspects. However, the set of risk factors identified by these various efforts is not homogenous across studies. This could be due to unique population factors or relatively small sample sizes. Only few studies were conducted on Asian populations, whose socio-cultural characteristics differ – in some cases remarkably – from those in western populations. Singapore is a highly dense city-state in South-east Asia, with low rates of substance abuse. The Longitudinal Youth at Risk Study (LYRIKS) commenced in Singapore in 2008, designed to comprehensively assess a group of ultra high risk (UHR) individuals and identify clinical, social, neuropsychological and biological risk factors unique to the local population. 173 UHR individuals were recruited from this single-site study over 4 years. Here, we detail aspects of the study methodology and report on the baseline social and clinical characteristics of the sample population. 78% of the UHR sample suffered from a psychiatric disorder, with Major Depressive Disorder present in more than half of the sample. The mean Global Assessment of Functioning (GAF) score was 57.4, which indicated a moderate level of impairment. Although the recruited sample did not differ significantly by social and clinical characteristics when compared to previously published reports, the conversion rate to psychosis was 3.5% (n = 6) at 6 months. Follow-up measures are currently underway to assess longitudinal incidence of psychosis and impact of risk factors on cognition, functioning and remission.