High Prevalence of Early-Onset Dementia in Schizophrenia Patients

A retrospective cohort study in JAMA Psychiatry found the prevalence of dementia by the time of Medicare eligibility was significantly high among schizophrenic individuals, reports MedPage Today . The researchers analyzed medical data from January 2007 to December 2017 on more than 8 million people in fee-for-service Medicare and Part D, including 74,170 diagnosed with schizophrenia and 7.9 million without a diagnosis of a serious mental illness (SMI). The team calculated that the prevalence of diagnosed dementia by 66 years old was 25 times higher for patients with schizophrenia, at 27.9 percent versus 1.3 percent in those without a history of SMI. By 80 years, prevalence in these cohorts rose to 70.2 percent and 11.3 percent. Prevalence of Alzheimer's disease was 8.2 percent by age 66 in the schizophrenia group and 37.2 percent by age 80. "When aging and other risk factors for dementia start accumulating, individuals with schizophrenia might cross a threshold for dementia diagnosis much sooner," warned Columbia University's T. Scott Stroup.