Metabolic syndrome: differences between psychiatric and internal medicine patients.

OBJECTIVES: The existence of specific features of Metabolic Syndrome (MetS) in psychiatric population in comparison to not psychiatric patients has not been systematically investigated. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the differences of MetS among a group of psychiatric patients and a group of internal medicine patients in terms of anthropometric measurements, biochemical variables, and cardiovascular risk.

METHODS: We enrolled 83 psychiatric inpatients under pharmacological treatment (schizophrenia n = 24, bipolar disorder n = 27, major depression n = 14, other n = 18) and 77 internal medicine patients visited for supposed MetS as affected by overweight or arterial hypertension.

RESULTS: Psychiatric patients differed from control subjects by age (yrs) (47 +/- 9 vs. 52 +/- 8.6, p = 0.001), waist circumference (cm) (111.9 +/- 10.9 vs. 106 +/- 12.6, p = 0.02), HDL cholesterol (mg/dl) (36.8 +/- 7 vs. 48 +/- 11.3, p = 0.001), serum insulin (microU/ml) (26 +/- 12.5 vs. 16.4 +/- 8.8, p = 0.001), triglyceride/HDL cholesterol ratio (4.8 +/- 2.7 vs. 3.3 +/- 2.2, p = 0.01). Female psychiatric patients had higher levels of triglycerides (mg) (178 + 86 vs. 115 + 53, p = 0.002) and of HOMA index (7.8 + 5 vs. 3.8 + 3.3, p = 0.005). Triglycerides and triglycerides/HDL ratio levels were higher in Unipolar Depression. A positive association was found between antidepressant drug treatment with triglycerides and triglycerides/HDL ratio levels, neuroleptic treatment with the HOMA index, and antipsychotics drugs with the Framingham index.

LIMITATIONS: Psychiatric study population numerosity and duration of psychiatric illness and drug treatment.

CONCLUSIONS: Specific features of MetS in psychiatric population are mainly represented by young age of onset, hyperinsulinemia, increased abdominal adiposity, and low HDL cholesterol whose common denominator may be insulin-resistance.