Life expectancy in schizophrenia

This short article by Dan Polansky intends to investigate the following question: what is the change of life expectancy in people with the diagnosis of schizophrenia compared to the general population? It turns out that the answer depends significantly depending on the source consulted.

Results/findings:

• 28.5 years: U.S. NIMH states: "The estimated average potential life lost for individuals with schizophrenia in the U.S. is 28.5 years."
• 20 years: Annual Review states: "This article reviews the literature on excess early mortality in persons with schizophrenia and suggests reasons for the high mortality as well as possible ways to reduce it. Persons with schizophrenia have an exceptionally short life expectancy. High mortality is found in all age groups, resulting in a life expectancy of approximately 20 years below that of the general population."
• 10-20: Medical News Tody states: "Studies suggest that, on average, people with schizophrenia live around 10–20 years less than people without the condition, but this will depend on the individual."
• 15.9 years (men) and 13.6 years (women): MentalHealth.com states: "In an analysis of 11 studies published in 13 publications covering the continents of Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, and North America, which involved 247 603 patients, schizophrenia was associated with premature death. This means that people with schizophrenia tend to live significantly shorter lives than the general population. The studies concluded that men with schizophrenia lose an average of 15.9 years of life, and women with schizophrenia lose around 13.6 years."
  • This seems to be based on The Lancet study, given the numbers match.
• 10-20 years: WHO: "People with schizophrenia have a life expectancy 10-20 years below that of the general population (4)."
• 15-20: NCBI article: "Schizophrenia is a life-shortening disease and life expectancy in patients may be 15–20 years shorter than in the general population, with increasing longevity gap over time."

One has to consider whether the figure is worldwide or country-specific. Furthermore, one cited study differentiated men from women.

Further reading

• Schizophrenia, wikipedia.org