Definition of Remission
The Remission in Schizophrenia Working Group (RSWG) met in 2003 to develop a consensus definition of symptomatic remission in patients with schizophrenia. They proposed criteria for remission based on 3 symptom domains from factor analysis studies, 5 key symptoms of schizophrenia from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV),21 and 8 symptoms present in the most widely used assessment scales (Table 4).20 The symptoms must all have a severity score of mild or less for at least 6 months to meet remission criteria.20 These criteria are useful because they reflect the heterogeneous nature and long-term course of schizophrenia. Patients may experience minor changes in symptoms over time and still remain in remission as long as no symptom is more severe than mild. A definition of remission that used a rating scale cutoff score would not work as well because, in contrast to major depressive disorder, schizophrenia has many different symptoms, which vary in occurrence over time. Positive symptoms are mainly prevalent in the acute phase; negative symptoms characterize the time between episodes. Therefore, a definition based on a PANSS total score would be problematic because if, for example, a cutoff of 50 were chosen, patients might yet have a high degree of negative symptoms. Nevertheless, the remission criteria have been criticized several times because they combine a relatively relaxed symptom criterion (mild symptoms are allowed) with a relatively severe time criterion.22 Similar to definitions of remission in other psychiatric disorders (such as anxiety),23 some mild symptoms are allowed to remitted patients, which should not interfere too much with functioning, and using more stringent cutoffs (eg, very mild, not present) would allow very few patients to meet the severity criterion (Figure 2).24 The 6-month criterion, however, poses a problem for clinical trials that need to be sufficiently long and need frequent measurements. A more balanced time criterion would be 3 months.
Recovery
The final step and ultimate goal of treatment in schizophrenia is recovery. The recovery stage is focused on patients regaining functioning and participating in social and vocational opportunities. Although the second-generation antipsychotics are not the breakthrough treatment they were hoped to be, they still are an important advance to help patients achieve recovery.
Although no consensus exists on how recovery should be defined,28 several criteria have been proposed. These criteria include some degree of symptom stabilization (such as being symptom free or having a BPRS/PANSS score ≤ 4 on all items) and functional improvement (eg, attending school or maintaining employment, socializing with peers) for a specified duration (for example, 2 or 5 years).33 Jääskeläinen and colleagues34 defined recovery in schizophrenia as having improvements in both clinical and social domains, with improvements in at least 1 of the domains persisting for at least 2 years, and current symptoms no worse than mild. Using these criteria, they conducted a meta-analysis of 37 studies in almost 9,000 patients and found a median recovery rate of 13.5%. The results from the Schizophrenia Outpatients Health Outcomes (SOHO) study,35 which analyzed 6,642 patients with schizophrenia, showed that 33% achieved long-lasting remission and 13% achieved long-lasting functional remission during the 3-year follow up period. Although recovery rates are not high for patients with schizophrenia, recovery is achievable, and patients need hope to sustain them throughout treatment as well as the support of dedicated clinicians to encourage them along the way.33 As pharmacologic and psychosocial treatments continue to improve, clinicians should have more options to create individualized treatment plans for their patients with schizophrenia.
http://www.psychiatrist.com/_layouts/PPP.Psych.Controls/ArticleViewer.ashx?ArticleURL=/JCP/article/Pages/2014/v75s01/v75s0102.aspx
Gives you some idea of proposed differences. Also-
How are remission and recovery defined in schizophrenia?
Remission, as a clinical milestone, has generally had varied definitions. In 2003 the Remission in Schizophrenia Working Group (RSWG) proposed evidence-based and consensus-based criteria for defining remission. Remission has consequently been defined as “a level of core symptoms (positive, negative and disorganised) that does not interfere with an individual’s behaviour, and is also below that required for an initial diagnosis of schizophrenia to be made according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorder, fourth edition (DSM-IV)”. Symptom improvements should last for a minimum of six months in order for remission to be reached.
Recovery is less precisely defined than remission. In addition to the symptom improvements required for remission, improvements in social and functional dimensions are required. These domains usually include, but are not restricted to; functional independence, maintaining satisfying relationships, being productive, having a sense of empowerment, and overcoming feelings of internalized stigma. It has been suggested that improvements in either clinical or functional domains need to be seen for at least 2 years.
Reducing symptoms sufficiently to achieve remission is the main goal of treatment programs, though this becomes more difficult after successive relapses. Remission is used more often than recovery as an ideal endpoint in many studies of treatment efficacy, as remission is easier to measure.
http://www.schizophreniaresearch.org.au/library/browse-library/course-and-outcomes/remission-and-recovery/