Is Glucose Intolerance An Inherent Part of Schizophrenia?
The issue of whether schizophrenia is an inherent risk factor for diabetes or whether atypical antipsychotic drugs induce glucose abnormalities is complex and, often, seemingly contradictory. Studies in the pre-antipsychotic drug period (ie, prior to 1952), and before widespread use of these agents, led some to conclude that this patient group must have an inherent predisposition to diabetes.22 In addition, a recently published study found that drug-naïve (n=26) first-episode patients with schizophrenia had significantly higher fasting plasma glucose and insulin, and a higher prevalence of impaired fasting glucose than healthy controls.23 Patients and controls in this study were carefully matched for BMI, waist circumference, and other markers of obesity that predispose an individual to diabetes. This study supports the contention that there is an inherent independent risk of glucose abnormalities, including diabetes, with schizophrenia.
