Risk Factors of Metabolic Syndrome in Community-Dwelling People with Schizophrenia

Abstract

This study investigated the prevalence and risk factors of metabolic syndrome in 100 community-dwelling people with schizophrenia registered in mental health facilities in Seoul, Korea. This study was conducted between 12 September and 15 November 2019. This study used a cross-sectional descriptive design. The data included were general and disease-related characteristics, diagnostic tests for metabolic syndrome, lifestyles, depression, and social support. The analysis of collected data was done by using the SPSS 24.0 program. The prevalence of metabolic syndrome was 42.0%. Higher body mass index (odds ratio [OR] = 1.60, 95% CI = 1.16–2.18, p = 0.004), and depression (OR = 1.22, 95% CI = 1.06–1.42, p = 0.008) were associated with higher risks of metabolic syndrome, while physical activity and weight control (OR = 0.71, 95% CI = 0.54–0.94, p = 0.018), dietary habits (OR = 0.72, 95% CI = 0.54–0.93, p = 0.011), and medication and health management (OR = 0.52, 95% CI = 0.31–0.86, p = 0.012) were associated with lower risks. Mental health care nurses need to recognize the high prevalence of metabolic syndrome in people with schizophrenia in the community and provide differentiated, customized lifestyle improvement programs based on the body mass index and depression status of each person with schizophrenia. Furthermore, comprehensive lifestyle improvement programs and health examination services that people with schizophrenia can easily adhere to should be developed.

Prevalence and Factors Associated with Metabolic Syndrome in Patients at a Psychosocial Care Center: A Cross-Sectional Study

“…The high prevalence of MS and obesity, as previously described, should be an alert for better clinical monitoring of individuals with mental illness, so this study demonstrates its relevance to the promotion of a local diagnosis of these individuals’ metabolic illness, which is reinforced by the literature [ 18 , 19 ]. Thus, the occurrence of MS is a marker of multimorbidity, which, despite being a recent concept, has been described as more prevalent among individuals with mental illness compared to the general population [ 40 ], and it is associated with polypharmacy and worse outcomes in the population with mental illness [ 41 ].…”

“…Despite the prevalence of MS being found to be higher than that described in the baseline study by Rocha et al (29.4%) [ 12 ], other groups had similar and even higher prevalence of MS among individuals with mental illness [ 18 , 19 ]. In a systematic review of general population studies in Brazil published in 2013, an average prevalence of 29.6% was found [ 8 ].…”

Comparative Characteristics of the Metabolic Syndrome Prevalence in Patients With Schizophrenia in Three Western Siberia Psychiatric Hospitals

“…Separate studies conducted in Korea and Taiwan compare a cohort of patients with schizophrenia with the general population, revealing a high prevalence of MetS in the first group, which is consistent with data from European studies (22,23). However, to date, few comparisons have been made between individual subpopulations of patients with schizophrenia.…”

Metabolic Syndrome and Dietary Habits in Hospitalized Patients with Schizophrenia: A Cross-Sectional Study

“…In the mentioned studies, and similar to our findings, dietary habits of those participants with and without MetS were very similar, even though it was assumed that they would significantly differ. Therefore, despite the fact that inadequate eating patterns represent one of the key risk factors for the development of MetS [ 16 ], our second hypothesis that hospitalized schizophrenic patients with MetS would have poorer dietary habits when compared to the individuals without MetS was refuted.…”

“…This fact is supported by the results of numerous previously conducted studies confirming that this specific population group has poorer dietary habits [ 9 , 10 ], engages in less physical activity [ 11 ], smokes more cigarettes [ 12 ], and consumes larger amounts of alcohol [ 13 ], when compared to people without mental disorders. Although the true cause for higher prevalence of MetS in individuals with schizophrenia has not yet been fully determined [ 14 ], the aforementioned factors may contribute to its development [ 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 ].…”