Gender differences in schizophrenia: A multicentric study from three Latin-America countries

Abstract

This study was aimed to explore clinical differences between women and men with schizophrenia (SZ) in Latin-America. It was conducted in public mental health centers in Bolivia, Peru and Chile.Two hundred forty-seven SZ patients participated in the study, 83 (33.6%) were women and 115 (46.6%) were Aymara. Compared to men, SZ women had slightly lower negative symptoms, reported slightly less social cognitive impairments, lower Family Relationships scores and higher Sentimental Life scores, independently of marital status, illness duration, age at illness onset and type of mental health treatment. All these differences have been replicated in the Aymara subgroup except for Sentimental Life scores. Aymara SZ women reported to be significantly less adherent into treatment compared to Aymara men. SZ women were found to have a better clinical profile and higher sentimental life scores than men. However, while SZ women reported more impaired Family Relationships compared to men, they were found to receive less psychotherapy in addition to pharmacological treatment. SZ Aymara women were also identified as a specific subgroup that may be targeted for increased observance strategies.