What variation of schizophrenia includes symptoms of schizophrenia plus a major depressive episode lasting more than two weeks?

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The correct answer is schizoaffective disorder, which is characterized by the presence of symptoms typical of schizophrenia, such as delusions and hallucinations, along with significant mood disturbances. Specifically, in schizoaffective disorder, a major depressive episode lasting more than two weeks is an essential component. This means that the individual experiences both the psychotic features of schizophrenia and the mood-related symptoms that are indicative of a depressive episode.

This dual symptomatology is what distinguishes schizoaffective disorder from other disorders such as schizophrenia, where predominant symptoms are psychotic without the mood component, and bipolar disorder, which primarily encompasses mood disturbances—either manic or depressive—without persistent psychotic features. Delusional disorder primarily involves fixed, false beliefs without the broader spectrum of symptoms found in schizophrenia or mood disorders.

Thus, schizoaffective disorder is specifically defined by this combination of schizophrenia-like symptoms and mood episode criteria, making it the correct answer for this question.

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