Comorbidity from a Neuropsychiatric Perspective

Comorbidity in neurology and psychiatry involves the onset of a mental illness with the simultaneous presence of a neurological disorder or other illness. The degree of comorbidity of mental and neurological disorders is unexpectedly high. In addition to the direct connection and simultaneous occurrence of mental and neurological illness, the indirect impact of mental illness on the occurrence of neurological problems is even more significant. This link is realized through the influence of mental illness on risk factors for the development of cerebrovascular and cardiovascular diseases. Their incidence is higher in the psychiatric population than in the general population. Numerous studies have confirmed that risk factors for cerebrovascular disease (hypertension, hyperlipidemia, diabetes mellitus, etc.) are more common among patients with mental disorders than in the general population. Also, research shows that patients with mental disorders are less frequently controlled, have less control over risk factors, and that numerous comorbidities are detected later or remain undetected. Given that cerebrovascular and cardiovascular diseases represent one of the most important public health and socioeconomic problems of today, both in the world and in Croatia, this problem should not remain in the shadow.