Physical Illness And Schizophrenia

Provides a comprehensive review of research evidence on physical diseases in people with schizophrenia.

It is well established that people suffering from schizophrenia have a higher prevalence of serious physical illness and a higher mortality than the general population. This book provides the first comprehensive and systematic review of current research evidence on the prevalence of physical diseases in people with schizophrenia, a disorder afflicting approximately 1% of the global population, and a group with mortality rates twice as high as the general population. The epidemiological data described in this book will provide the basis for improved awareness of these problems and better treatment for patients. This is the first in a series of books addressing an issue emerging as a priority in the mental health field: the timely and proper recognition of physical health problems in people with mental disorders. They should be read by policy makers, service managers, mental health professionals and general practitioners.

Physical Health and Schizophrenia offers a user-friendly guide to the physical health problems associated with schizophrenia for the busy clinician.

An international team of leading researchers and clinicians here provide a comprehensive, epidemiological overview of this multi-faceted and still perplexing disorder, and address some of the key questions it raises. How important in the genetic contribution to schizophrenia? Do pregnancy and birth complications increase the risk for schizophrenia? Is the incidence of schizophrenia changing? Why is the rate higher among immigrants and in those born in cities? Controversial issues such as the validity of discrete or dimensional classifications of schizophrenia and the continuum between psychosis and 'normality' are explored in depth, and separate chapters are devoted to topics of particular relevance to schizophrenia such as suicide, violence and substance abuse. Finally, new prospects for treatment and prevention are considered. Drawing together the findings from social, genetic, developmental and classical epidemiology of schizophrenia, this text will prove an invaluable resource for clinicians and researchers.

Despite growing awareness in the psychiatric community of the multifaceted medical needs of the severely mentally ill, statistics show that as much as 60% of all schizophrenia patients die prematurely from nonpsychiatric medical conditions -- in part because many physicians have not yet recognized how to properly treat common diseases and illnesses within this complex patient population. Medical Illness and Schizophrenia, Second Edition, is the only clinical guide to focus exclusively on the treatment of common medical comorbidities among patients with schizophrenia. Like its best-selling predecessor, the book compiles the latest research and clinical information on integrating medical and psychiatric care for the schizophrenia patient. Twenty-eight physicians and psychiatrists, including editors Jonathan M. Meyer, M.D., and Henry A. Nasrallah, M.D., lend their expertise to this new, expanded edition. In fifteen chapters, this volume covers a wide range of common medical problems -- from metabolic and heart conditions, such as cardiovascular disease, hyperlipidemia, obesity and diabetes, to substance abuse and smoking. Each chapter concludes with "Key Clinical Points" that summarize important concepts and ensure reader retention. Additionally, the second edition includes new chapters that touch on some of the most complex clinical issues in the field of schizophrenia treatment today: Recent trends in the integration of medical and mental healthcare Behavioral treatments for weight loss in persons with schizophrenia Treatment of sexual dysfunction among persons treated for schizophrenia Health outcomes of schizophrenia treatment in children and adolescents Health outcomes of schizophrenia treatment during pregnancy and breastfeeding As the only clinical text of its kind, Medical Illness and Schizophrenia, Second Edition, is an invaluable resource for psychiatrists, nurses, healthcare professionals, and psychiatric and clinical residents. The goal of this text has always been to help clinicians recognize schizophrenia as both a brain disorder and a systemic disease with multiple manifestations that go beyond the obvious psychiatric symptoms -- and thus take a broader approach to treatment of schizophrenia. This new edition is a comprehensive, practical manual that serves as a reference for the medical management of seriously mentally ill patients across the age spectrum in both inpatient and outpatient settings.

Brain disordersâ€"neurological, psychiatric, and developmentalâ€"now affect at least 250 million people in the developing world, and this number is expected to rise as life expectancy increases. Yet public and private health systems in developing countries have paid relatively little attention to brain disorders. The negative attitudes, prejudice, and stigma that often surround many of these disorders have contributed to this neglect. Lacking proper diagnosis and treatment, millions of individual lives are lost to disability and death. Such conditions exact both personal and economic costs on families, communities, and nations. The report describes the causes and risk factors associated with brain disorders. It focuses on six representative brain disorders that are prevalent in developing countries: developmental disabilities, epilepsy, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, depression, and stroke. The report makes detailed recommendations of ways to reduce the toll exacted by these six disorders. In broader strokes, the report also proposes six major strategies toward reducing the overall burden of brain disorders in the developing world.