[Measuring the cognitive deficit associated with schizophrenia: presentation of the MATRICS neuropsychological test battery].

The aim of the present study is to introduce and give an overview of the Measurement and Treatment Research to Improve Cognition in Schizophrenia (MATRICS) neurocognitive test battery, which has been recently developed in the United States specifically for the assessment of neurocognitive deficits in patients with schizophrenia. The MATRICS test battery consists of 10 individually administered tests to measure cognitive performance in the following 7 domains: speed of processing, attention/vigilance, working memory, verbal learning, visual learning, reasoning and problem solving, and social cognition. Besides giving a detailed description of the test, the authors also aim to point out the advantages and novel features of the test compared to already existing neuropsychological test batteries used to assess cognition in patients with schizophrenia. The future applicability of the MATRICS test battery will be related to current trends in clinical trials and pharmacological studies. The significance of the standardization and adaptation of the test to Hungarian is emphasized and future possibilities of applying the test in a Hungarian language environment discussed.