Association Between Metabolic Risk Factors and Cognitive Impairment in Schizophrenia Based on Sex

Abstract

Objective Sex differences have been observed in many aspects of schizophrenia, including cognitive deficits. Despite extensive research into the relationship between metabolic factors and cognitive deficits in schizophrenia, few studies have explored the potential sex difference in their association.Methods We recruited 358 schizophrenia patients and 231 healthy controls. The participants underwent measurements of body mass index (BMI), waist circumference, blood pressure, triglycerides, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and fasting blood glucose. Metabolic risk factors included abdominal obesity, hypertension, hyperglycemia, and dyslipidemia. A collection of these metabolic risk factors has been defined as metabolic syndrome. These diagnoses were based on the criteria of the National Cholesterol Education Program’s Adult Treatment Panel III. Cognitive performance was measured using the Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status (RBANS). A descriptive analysis, difference analysis, and linear regression model were used to identify the metabolic risk factors for cognitive function in schizophrenia.Results Our findings revealed sex differences in the rate of abdominal obesity and hypertension in schizophrenic patients. Additionally, we observed sex differences in the association between metabolic risk factors and cognitive impairment in schizophrenia. Specifically, hyperglycemia was associated with the immediate memory index score of RBANS in male patients, while dyslipidemia was associated with language, attention, delayed memory index scores, and RBANS total score in female patients.Conclusion Our results suggest that sex should be considered when evaluating the impact of metabolic disorders on the cognitive function of schizophrenic patients. Moreover, our study identifies hyperglycemia and dyslipidemia as potential targets for precise treatment by sex stratification, which could benefit the improvement of cognitive impairment in schizophrenic patients.

Biopsychosocial Variables in Male Schizophrenic Patients: A Comprehensive Comparison with Healthy Controls

“…Our study revealed significant differences in neuropsychological performance, anthropometric measurements, and biochemical markers between male schizophrenic patients and healthy controls. These differences are consistent with the recently published findings of Huang et al (2023), who investigated the association between metabolic risk factors and cognitive impairment in schizophrenia [17]. Higher scores in TMT and Stroop tests among the SZ group indicate worse neuropsychological performance, mirroring the observations of Cao et al (2023) regarding the impact of metabolic syndrome on cognitive function and the benefits of psychological interventions [18].…”