Abstract
Personality disorders (PDs) are grouped into clusters A, B, and C. However, whether the three clusters of PDs have differences in comorbid mental disorders or gender distribution is still lacking sufficient evidence. We aim to investigate the distribution pattern across the three clusters of PDs with a population-based cohort study. This study used the Taiwan national database between 1995 and 2013 to examine the data of patients with cluster A PDs, cluster B PDs, or cluster C PDs. We compared the differences of psychiatric comorbidities classified in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fifth edition across the three clusters of PDs. Moreover, we formed gender subgroups of the three PDs to observe the discrepancy between male and female. Among the 9845 patients, those with cluster A PDs had the highest proportion of neurodevelopmental disorders, schizophrenia and neurocognitive disorders, those with cluster B PDs demonstrated the largest percentage of bipolar disorders, trauma and stressor disorders, feeding and eating disorders, and substance and addictive disorders, and those with cluster C PDs had the greatest proportion of depressive disorders, anxiety disorders, obsessive–compulsive disorders, somatic symptom disorders, and sleep–wake disorders. The gender subgroups revealed significant male predominance in neurodevelopmental disorders and female predominance in sleep–wake disorders across all three clusters of PDs. Our findings support that some psychiatric comorbidities are more prevalent in specified cluster PDs and that gender differences exist across the three clusters of PDs. These results are an important reference for clinicians who are developing services that target real-world patients with PDs.
Highlights
Personality disorders (PDs) are a class of mental disorders that represent maladaptive self and interpersonal functioning [1].They are usually associated with high costs to society and negatively influence progress when treating other mental disorders [2]
Males were predominant in cluster A PDs (62.35%), whereas females were predominant in cluster B PDs (69.11%) and C PDs (55.54%)
We found male predominance in childhood-onset disorders, schizophrenia, trauma and stressor disorders, substance and addictive disorders, obsessive–compulsive disorders, and sexual disorders across all three clusters of PDs, with significance observed in neurodevelopmental disorders
Summary
Personality disorders (PDs) are a class of mental disorders that represent maladaptive self (identity and self-direction) and interpersonal (empathy and intimacy) functioning [1]. They are usually associated with high costs to society and negatively influence progress when treating other mental disorders [2]. PDs have a high prevalence of other mental disorders, ranging from 4.5 to 100 percent, and clinicians may find it difficult to access or provide appropriate management for patients with personality disorder and comorbid mental disorders [6]. They have not yet investigated other mental disorders, such as neurodevelopmental disorders and sleep–wake disorders
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