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Patients with schizophrenia present a two- to three-fold higher prevalence of diabetes, of metabolic syndrome and of cardiovascular morbidity. The reason for this increased prevalence may involve intrinsic vulnerability, lifestyle factors and iatrogenic effects of antipsychotic drugs. The objective of this multinational, cross-sectional, pharmacoepidemiological study was to determine the prevalence of diabetes, lipid disorders, obesity, hypertension and the metabolic syndrome in patients with schizophrenia treated with antipsychotic drugs. Particular attention was taken to acquire data on a wide a range as possible of demographic, clinical and lifestyle variables that may influence the risk of metabolic disorders, which were taken into account in the calculation of prevalence data by propensity scoring. The study included 2270 subjects from 16 European countries, predominantly from Central and Eastern Europe. The proportion of subjects presenting the pathologies of interest was relatively high, ranging from 28% for glycaemic disorders to 70% for lipid disorders.

The objective of this crosssectional study was to estimate the prevalence of metabolic disorders and hypertension in patients with schizophrenia and to compare prevalence between patients treated with first-generation (FGA) and second-generation (SGA) antipsychotic drugs. The study included 2270 adults with schizophrenia. Patients were assigned to an FGA or SGA stratum on the basis of current treatment. Data were collected on sociodemographic, lifestyle and clinical variables. Blood pressure, waist and hip circumference, blood glucose, triglycerides and cholesterol were measured. The primary evaluation criterion was the prevalence of a glycaemic disorder. Secondary criteria were the prevalence of dyslipidaemia, obesity, hypertension and metabolic syndrome. A propensity score was used to control imbalance between strata. The prevalence of glycaemic disorders was 31.1% (FGA) and 27.6% (SGA). No between-strata difference in prevalence was observed for glycaemic disorders, dyslipidaemia or metabolic syndrome. The prevalence of hypertension was higher (P=0.033) in the FGA group. The proportion of women (but not men) who were overweight or obese was higher in the SGA group (P=0.035), as was the proportion reporting weight gain of more than 5 kg (P

Patients with schizophrenia present a two‐ to three‐fold higher prevalence of diabetes, of metabolic syndrome and of cardiovascular morbidity. The reason for this increased prevalence may involve intrinsic vulnerability, lifestyle factors and iatrogenic effects of antipsychotic drugs. The objective of this multinational, cross‐sectional, pharmacoepidemiological study was to determine the prevalence of diabetes, lipid disorders, obesity, hypertension and the metabolic syndrome in patients with schizophrenia treated with antipsychotic drugs. Particular attention was taken to acquire data on a wide a range as possible of demographic, clinical and lifestyle variables that may influence the risk of metabolic disorders, which were taken into account in the calculation of prevalence data by propensity scoring. The study included 2270 subjects from 16 European countries, predominantly from Central and Eastern Europe. The proportion of subjects presenting the pathologies of interest was relatively high, ranging from 28% for glycaemic disorders to 70% for lipid disorders. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.