Past Issues
Weight Management Program for Overweight
Patients with Schizophrenia:
A 12-week Randomized Controlled Trial
Si-Sheng Huang, M.D., Nan-Ying Chiu, M.D.
Objective: To evaluate the effectiveness of a weight-management program for
overweight schizophrenics. Methods: The patients were recruited from both the
outpatient clinic and the psychiatric day hospital. They were randomly assigned to
an intervention group (n=14) or control group (n=14). Values for body weight, bodymass
index, and body fat were measured. We assessed psychiatric symptoms with
the Clinical Global Impression-Severity and Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale.We used
the two-tailed paired t-test to evaluate within-group changes. Between-group
differenceswere assessed using univariate analysis of variance. Results: Therewas
no significant change in body weight of the patients from baseline to endpoint for
either group. The severity of psychiatric symptoms in the intervention group was
decreased significantly (CGI-S: t=2.280, df=13, p=.040; BPRS: t=5.362, df=13, p<.
001). Conclusion: The body weight of the overweight schizophrenics did not
decrease by this program, however, their psychiatric symptoms were improved by it.
The results need to be duplicaled in future studies.
overweight schizophrenics. Methods: The patients were recruited from both the
outpatient clinic and the psychiatric day hospital. They were randomly assigned to
an intervention group (n=14) or control group (n=14). Values for body weight, bodymass
index, and body fat were measured. We assessed psychiatric symptoms with
the Clinical Global Impression-Severity and Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale.We used
the two-tailed paired t-test to evaluate within-group changes. Between-group
differenceswere assessed using univariate analysis of variance. Results: Therewas
no significant change in body weight of the patients from baseline to endpoint for
either group. The severity of psychiatric symptoms in the intervention group was
decreased significantly (CGI-S: t=2.280, df=13, p=.040; BPRS: t=5.362, df=13, p<.
001). Conclusion: The body weight of the overweight schizophrenics did not
decrease by this program, however, their psychiatric symptoms were improved by it.
The results need to be duplicaled in future studies.
| Key Word | weight management, overweight, schizophrenia, psychiatric sym |
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