[Schizophrenia and education: about 32 Tunisian students suffering from schizophrenia]

To study the schooling among school and university students suffering from schizophrenia.

A retrospective, descriptive and analytic study based on information from medical records of patients treated in Psychopedagogy Unit in psychiatry department «B" of the Hedi Chaker Hospital University of Sfax, during the period from 1995 to 2009. Inclusion criteria were: diagnosis of schizophrenia (DSM-IV-TR) and follow-up duration of at least one year.

Thirty-two patients were included. The sex ratio (M/F) was 2.2. The average age was 20.7 years at the first consultation and 19.17 years at the disease onset which was insidious in 75% of cases. Undifferentiated (46.8%) and paranoid (31.2%) were the most frequent types of schizophrenia. The education level at the disease onset was secondary (62.5%) and high (37.5%). The school results were low in 62.5%. Patients who received at least one blank year were 56.3% and those who were reoriented 12.5%. They dropped out in 75% of cases. Grade repetition after the onset of schizophrenia (53.1%) was correlated with two factors: low socioeconomic status (p= 0.008) and conventional antipsychotic treatment (p= 0.021).

Our results confirm the negative impact of schizophrenia on the normal course of schooling. Collaboration between psychiatrist, school doctor and teacher becomes a necessity to guarantee early schizophrenia diagnosis and adequate medical and educational care.