Torrey E F
William A. White Division, Saint Elizabeth's Hospital, Washington DC 20032.
Br J Psychiatry. 1987 May;150:598-608. doi: 10.1192/bjp.150.5.598.
Over 70 prevalence studies of schizophrenia published since 1948 are reviewed. Despite problems of method, the studies suggest that there may be significant differences in prevalence among different populations and that prevalence may change over time. Further research is needed on how much differences in diagnosis or the course of schizophrenia contribute to the variable prevalence rates. The paper suggests the following as areas for additional enquiry: a possible north-south gradient, special populations (e.g. American Hutterites, northern Swedes, western Irish, castes in India) and ongoing case registers in areas of suspected high and low prevalence.
本文回顾了自1948年以来发表的70多项精神分裂症患病率研究。尽管存在方法上的问题，但这些研究表明，不同人群之间的患病率可能存在显著差异，且患病率可能随时间变化。关于精神分裂症诊断或病程的差异在多大程度上导致患病率的变化，还需要进一步研究。本文提出以下几个方面作为进一步探究的领域：可能存在的南北梯度差异、特殊人群（如美国哈特派信徒、瑞典北部人、爱尔兰西部人、印度种姓）以及疑似高患病率和低患病率地区的现有病例登记情况。
