Korean J Psychopharmacol.  2007 Mar;18(2):81-85.

Assessment of Abdominal Fat and Mid-Thigh Low-Density Muscle Areas in Patients with Schizophrenia

Affiliations
  • 1Department of Endocrinology, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea. acw@yumc.yonsei.ac.kr
  • 2Department of Psychiatrics, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.

Abstract


OBJECTIVE
Patients with schizophrenia are at a higher risk for developing insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). However, few studies have examined abdominal fat and mid-thigh low-density muscle areas, which are known risk factors for insulin resistance and T2DM, in patients with schizophrenia. Therefore, we measured the abdominal fat and mid-thigh low-density muscle areas of schizophrenics and compared them with normal controls.
METHODS
Nineteen (four men and 15 women) drug-naive or -free subjects who met the DSM IV criteria for schizophrenia and 19 age- and sex-matched controls were recruited. We measured weight, height, waist circumference, and percent body fat, and calculated the body mass index (BMI). Abdominal fat and mid-thigh low-density muscle areas were evaluated using computed tomography.
RESULTS
There was no significant difference in terms of age and BMI between the two groups. The areas of abdominal fat (262.4+/-101.8 vs. 257.1+/-93.8 cm2 ; p=0.919), subcutaneous fat (182.4+/-72.8 vs. 180.5+/-75.1 cm2 ; p=0.988), visceral fat (79.9+/-47.2 vs. 76.6+/-49.3 cm2 ; p=0.872), and mid-thigh low-density muscle (15.0+/-9.9 vs. 15.4+/-5.2 cm2, p=0.373) did not differ between schizophrenics and controls.
CONCLUSION
Abdominal obesity is a well-recognized risk factor for developing certain medical conditions such as insulin resistance and T2DM. We demonstrated that drug-naive or- free patients with schizophrenia do not have increased visceral fat or mid-thigh low-density muscle areas, which might have explained the higher prevalence of insulin resistance and T2DM in these patients.

Keyword

Schizophrenia; Abdominal fat; Mid-thigh low-density muscle; Insulin resistance; Type 2 diabetes

MeSH Terms

Abdominal Fat*
Adipose Tissue
Body Mass Index
Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2
Humans
Insulin Resistance
Intra-Abdominal Fat
Male
Obesity, Abdominal
Prevalence
Risk Factors
Schizophrenia*
Subcutaneous Fat
Waist Circumference
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