title: Effect of age and disease on bone mass in Japanese patients with schizophrenia.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  There have been a limited number of studies comparing bone mass between patients with schizophrenia and the general population. The aim of this study was to compare the bone mass of schizophrenia patients with that of healthy subjects in Japan.
  
  
  METHODS
  We recruited patients (n = 362), aged 48.8 ± 15.4 (mean ± SD) years who were diagnosed with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder based on the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fourth edition (DSM-IV). Bone mass was measured using quantitative ultrasound densitometry of the calcaneus. The osteosono-assessment index (OSI) was calculated as a function of the speed of sound and the transmission index. For comparative analysis, OSI data from 832 adults who participated in the Iwaki Health Promotion Project 2009 was used as representative of the general community.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Mean OSI values among male schizophrenic patients were lower than those in the general population in the case of individuals aged 40 and older. In females, mean OSI values among schizophrenic patients were lower than those in the general community in those aged 60 and older. In an analysis using the general linear model, a significant interaction was observed between subject groups and age in males.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Older schizophrenic patients exhibit lower bone mass than that observed in the general population. Our data also demonstrate gender and group differences among schizophrenic patients and controls with regard to changes in bone mass associated with aging. These results indicate that intervention programs designed to delay or prevent decreased bone mass in schizophrenic patients might be tailored according to gender.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuropsychiatry, Hirosaki University School of Medicine, Hirosaki, Japan. nsuga3@yahoo.co.jp.
authors.forename: Norio
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Sugawara
authors.forename: Norio
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Yasui-Furukori
authors.forename: Takashi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Umeda
authors.forename: Shoko
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Tsuchimine
authors.forename: Akira
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Fujii
authors.forename: Yasushi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Sato
authors.forename: Manabu
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Saito
authors.forename: Hanako
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Furukori
authors.forename: Kazuma
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Danjo
authors.forename: Masashi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Matsuzaka
authors.forename: Ippei
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Takahashi
authors.forename: Sunao
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kaneko