Long-term follow-up of schizophrenic patients in Edinburgh

This study is a 12-year follow-up of 153 subjects diagnosed as suffering from schizophrenia or paranoid psychoses. They had their key discharge in the years 1959-61 and were first followed-up at 12 months after discharge (Renton et al. ((1963)). Important findings were that outcome was related to mental state on discharge and also to the factor of continued neuroleptic medication. At this second follow-up 12 years later the important issues that have emerged are the differences in outcome between men and women and the apparently high death rate for men. The outcome in term of work, re-admission to hospital and death was much worse for male subjects.