ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: Obesity is common among people with severe mental illness (SMI). We report our experience from the first 4 years of The Cromwell House weight management clinic. METHOD: Ninety-three patients with SMI aged 43.7 +/- 1.2 years referred themselves to this clinic. The patients were seen in weekly group sessions that involved weight measurement, discussion and education. RESULTS: Mean baseline weight was 89.5 +/- 1.8 kg [body mass index (BMI) 32.3 +/- 0.5 kg/m(2)]. Twenty-three per cent dropped out within the first 8 weeks. There was progressive statistically significant reduction in mean weight and BMI throughout the duration of monitoring with no suggestion of a plateau. The mean final weight loss was 6.2 +/- 0.6 kg. Weight loss was correlated only with the number of sessions attended (r = 0.53, P < 0.0001). CONCLUSION: Long-term weight management of obese and overweight patients with severe forms of mental illness was possible through the provision of simple lifestyle advice within the group setting.
Subject(s)
Behavior Therapy , Obesity/prevention & control , Psychotic Disorders/physiopathology , Weight Loss , Adult , Aged , Female , Humans , Male , Middle Aged , Mood Disorders/physiopathology , Mood Disorders/psychology , Patient Compliance , Patient Dropouts , Patient Education as Topic , Psychotic Disorders/psychology , Schizophrenia/physiopathology , Schizophrenic Psychology , United KingdomABSTRACT
Patients who are prescribed psychotropic medication may be expected to have some impairment in general attention and concentration and in measures of psychological and motor performance. These impairments may be due to the illness itself, the medication or the combination of both. Twenty two patients who were receiving depot neuroleptics for chronic schizophrenia were compared with sixteen control subjects in their performance on simulated driving tests. There was a significant decrement in driving performance in the index group compared with a normal control group.