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Results from the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) MATRICS-CT initiative were presented on October 27, 2009 in Bethesda, MD.

The meeting provided opportunities for open discussions of each presentation.

Slide presentations from the meeting are below:

• Overview
• Translations and Cultural Adaptations of the MATRICS Consensus Cognitive Battery
• Validation of Intermediate Measures (VIM): Study Results
• Validation of Intermediate Measures (VIM): Rand Panel, Study Organization and Design
• Cross-Cultural Adaptation of Intermediate Measures

For additional information, please view the following PDF.
MATRICS-CT NIMH Informational Flyer

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CLOSED: MATRICS-CT October 27, 2009 Meeting Registration

MATRICS-CT (for co-primary and translation) is an NIMH initiative -- supported by a partnership of pharmaceutical companies -- for facilitating the development of pharmacological agents for cognitive impairments associated with schizophrenia (CIAS). It was developed to address two potential obstacles that were identified during the MATRICS (Measurement and Treatment Research to Improve Cognition in Schizophrenia).

The first obstacle is the lack of a consensus regarding instruments for measuring functioning that can be used in relatively brief clinical trials. In an early MATRICS meeting the Food and Drug Administration stated that improvement on neuropsychological tests would be insufficient for approval of a drug for CIAS. Improvement on the tests should be accompanied by improvement on a measure of functioning or the patient's perception of improved cognition. (The agency did not require actual improvement in community functioning but improvement in a measure that had greater face validity than a neuropsychological task.) MATRICS-CT will develop a consensus regarding the best instrument or instruments for measuring functioning in these trials.

The second obstacle was the need for versions of neuropsychological tasks that could be administered in languages other than English. MATRICS-CT will translate the MATRICS Consensus Cognitive Battery in to languages that are commonly used for large international trials.

Current participants in the consortium include: Abbott, AstraZeneca, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Eli Lilly, GlaxoSmithKline, Johnson & Johnson, Lundbeck, Merck, Pfizer, Roche, Sanofi Aventis, Solvay, Takeda and Wyeth.