Prevalence of overweight in schizophrenia patients in Asia: findings of the research on Asian psychotropic prescription patterns (REAP) study

Objective: This study examined the proportion of overweight in schizophrenia inpatients in selected Asian countries and territories and its independent demographic and clinical correlates. Method: Data on 1,534 hospitalized schizophrenia patients in 9 Asian countries and territories were collected by a review of medical files supplemented by a clinical interview during a 1-month period. Patients' sociodemographic and clinical characteristics, prescriptions of psychotropic drugs, and Body Mass Index (BMI) were recorded using a standardized protocol and data collection procedure. For analyzes, BMI >= 25 kg/m(2) was defined as overweight. Results: The proportion of overweight was 35.8% (549/1,534) in the entire sample, with 39.7% (224/564) in females and 33.5% (325/970) in males (p = 0.01) and with wide inter-country variations. Multiple logistic regression analysis revealed that after controlling for study sites, overweight was independently associated with more frequent use of mood stabilizers (p < 0.001, odds ration (OR) = 1.4, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.1 - 1.8) and longer length of illness (p < 0.001, OR = 1.6, 95% CI = 1.2 - 2.1) but was less likely found in male patients (p = 0.003, OR = 0.7, 95% CI = 0.5 - 0.8). Conclusions: The prevalence of overweight Asian schizophrenia patients is significantly lower than the reported figures among their Western counterparts. There is considerable variation in prevalence of overweight schizophrenia patients within Asian countries and territories.