BACKGROUND Recent research has highlighted that facial emotion recognition deficits are more common in people with schizophrenia, but the reason for this association is not well understood. Comparing facial recognition deficits in unaffected individuals at higher genetic risk for schizophrenia with individuals at lower genetic risk could increase our understanding of this relationship. METHODS We systematically reviewed studies reporting on the relationship between genetic risk of schizophrenia and facial emotion recognition deficits. Meta-analyses were performed where sufficient data were available, otherwise we conducted narrative summaries. Meta-analyses were performed both for generalised and specific facial emotion recognition deficits. RESULTS 34 studies were included in this review with 23 included in meta-analyses. Meta-analysis indicated strong evidence of a deficit in facial emotion recognition in first-degree relatives of people with schizophrenia compared with controls (SMD 0.38 95% CI 0.26 to 0.51, p ≤ 0.001). Further meta-analyses demonstrated strong evidence of a deficit in the recognition of negative valence facial expressions (SMD 0.19 CI 0.06 to 0.32, p = 0.004) but no evidence of deficit in the recognition of neutral or positive valance. CONCLUSIONS There is strong evidence of facial emotion recognition deficits in first-degree relatives of people with schizophrenia. Our findings suggest that such deficits in people with schizophrenia arise prior to the onset of the disorder, though cannot inform whether that association is causal or due to confounding. Emotion recognition deficits, particularly to negative emotions, might be useful predictors of schizophrenia risk.

中文翻译：

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精神分裂症遗传风险与面部情绪识别关系的系统评价和荟萃分析

背景最近的研究强调，面部情绪识别缺陷在精神分裂症患者中更为常见，但这种关联的原因尚不清楚。将精神分裂症遗传风险较高的未受影响个体与遗传风险较低的个体的面部识别缺陷进行比较，可以增加我们对这种关系的理解。方法 我们系统地回顾了关于精神分裂症遗传风险与面部情绪识别缺陷之间关系的研究报告。在有足够数据的情况下进行荟萃分析，否则我们进行叙述性总结。对广义和特定的面部情绪识别缺陷进行了荟萃分析。结果 34 项研究纳入本次审查，其中 23 项纳入荟萃分析。荟萃分析表明，与对照组相比，精神分裂症患者的一级亲属在面部情绪识别方面存在缺陷的有力证据（SMD 0.38 95% CI 0.26 至 0.51，p ≤ 0.001）。进一步的荟萃分析表明，在识别负价面部表情方面存在缺陷（SMD 0.19 CI 0.06 至 0.32，p = 0.004），但没有证据表明在识别中性或正价方面存在缺陷。结论 有强有力的证据表明精神分裂症患者的一级亲属存在面部情绪识别缺陷。我们的研究结果表明，精神分裂症患者的这种缺陷在疾病发作之前就出现了，尽管不能说明这种关联是因果关系还是混杂因素。情绪识别缺陷，尤其是负面情绪，