Prevalence and incidence
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Worldwide incidence

What is worldwide incidence of schizophrenia?

Incidence refers to how many new cases of schizophrenia there are per population in a specified time period. It is different from prevalence, which refers to how many existing cases there are at a particular point in time, or over a lifetime. Incidence is usually reported as the number of new cases per 100,000 people per year, but this can vary. Differences in the incidence of a disorder can provide clues to its possible causes. For example, a population register with information gained from consensus data helps to identify all adults in a defined area who were born within a certain time period (a cohort). Cross linking this information with a mental health register for the cohort can be used to identify people who received treatment for schizophrenia over particular times. This information provides the incidence of schizophrenia for various age groups within that cohort.

What is the worldwide incidence of schizophrenia?

Moderate to high quality evidence suggests the incidence rate of schizophrenia is around 18.58 per 100,000 person-years, and the incidence of schizophrenia or schizophreniform disorder is around 14.55 per 100,000 person-years.

April 2022

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Last updated at: 1:23 pm, 6th April 2022
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