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Summer birth and deficit schizophrenia: a pooled analysis from 6 countries
Erick Messias1, Brian Kirkpatrick, Evelyn Bromet
1Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
Archives of General Psychiatry
|October 7, 2004
Summary
Deficit schizophrenia is linked to a distinct birth season, with more cases occurring in June and July. This finding suggests deficit schizophrenia may be a separate disease entity.
Area of Science:
- Psychiatry
- Schizophrenia Studies
- Epidemiology
Background:
- Summer birth has been associated with deficit schizophrenia in prior reports.
- Deficit and nondeficit schizophrenia exhibit distinct characteristics.
- Understanding birth season patterns can offer insights into schizophrenia subtypes.
Purpose of the Study:
- To analyze combined data on birth month and schizophrenia subtypes.
- To investigate the relationship between month of birth and deficit vs. nondeficit schizophrenia.
- To pool published and unpublished data from the Northern Hemisphere.
Main Methods:
- Included published and population-based studies with deficit/nondeficit categorization.
- Utilized meta-analytic fixed-effects models for month of birth comparisons.
- Analyzed data from 6 countries, including prevalence and incidence approximation studies.
Main Results:
- Significant differences in birth season were found between deficit and nondeficit schizophrenia (P < .001).
- An increased incidence of deficit schizophrenia births occurred in June and July (OR, 1.9).
- Similar seasonal patterns were observed in prevalence studies.
Conclusions:
- Deficit schizophrenia demonstrates a unique season of birth pattern compared to nondeficit schizophrenia.
- The findings support the concept of deficit schizophrenia as a distinct disease.
- Birth season may serve as a potential etiological factor in schizophrenia subtypes.