ED visits related to schizophrenia twice as common among men than women

The overall rate of emergency department visits related to schizophrenia for men was approximately double the rate for women, according to a data brief from the National Center for Health Statistics.

“ED care is important for the treatment of acute presentations of schizophrenia and may serve as a safety net for schizophrenic patients not otherwise receiving care,” Michael Albert, MD, MPH, of the CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics, and colleagues wrote.

To assess rates and characteristics of ED visits related to schizophrenia among adults aged 18 to 64 years, researchers analyzed data from the 2009 to 2011 National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey. Visits with an ICD-9-CM code of 295 for any of the three diagnoses listed as related to the visit were included in the analysis.

Researchers found that an average of 382,000 ED visits related to schizophrenia occurred each year among adults from 2009 to 2011, with an overall visit rate of 20.1 per 10,000 adults.

Visits related to schizophrenia had a primary diagnosis of schizophrenia (58.8%), another mental disorder (15.4%) and a nonmental health disorder (25.7%).

The rate of ED visits related to schizophrenia was approximately twice as high for men (26.5 per 10,000) than for women (13.8 per 10,000).

Public insurance (Medicaid, Medicare or dual Medicare and Medicaid) was more frequently the primary expected source of payment for ED visits related to schizophrenia compared with ED visits unrelated to schizophrenia.

ED visits related to schizophrenia involved homeless individuals more frequently than visits unrelated to schizophrenia.

Approximately one-third of ED visits related to schizophrenia resulted in hospital admission and 16.7% resulted in transfer to a psychiatric hospital. Both of these rates were higher for visits related to schizophrenia vs. those unrelated.

“One of the goals of Healthy People 2020 is to improve mental health through prevention and by ensuring access to appropriate, quality mental health services. National data on the rates and characteristics of ED visits related to schizophrenia will help policymakers and practitioners address disparities and meet this goal,” the researchers concluded. – by Amanda Oldt

Disclosure: Please see the full study for a list of all authors’ relevant financial disclosures.

Reference:

Albert M, et al. Emergency department visits related to schizophrenia among adults aged 18–64: United States, 2009–2011. Available at: http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/pressroom. Accessed Sept. 23, 2015.