Heat is more dangerous for people with schizophrenia than for people with cardiovascular disease
In recent years, almost every summer we hear about abnormal heat that has engulfed a particular region. 2021 has been a particularly hot year for the Pacific Northwest. Temperatures in Canada hit a historic high of 49.6 degrees Celsius. The heat lasted for a week, leading to many deaths. In British Columbia alone (a province in western Canada), 600 people died from the heat. It is believed that the most vulnerable categories of people to heat are the elderly, as well as people with overweight, cardiovascular and other chronic diseases. However, a recent study showed that there is another category of people who are even more vulnerable to heat than all of the above – people with schizophrenia.
Mentally ill people are at high risk of dying from the heat
To understand which chronic diseases increase the risk of death during a heat wave the most, scientists studied the medical records of more than 1,500 people who died during the 2021 heat dome in Canada. They also examined the causes of death and medical histories of more than 6,500 people who died on the same days, but over the previous 9 years.
The data covered 26 chronic diseases ranging from cardiovascular disease to dementia and osteoporosis. At the same time, scientists did not expect that they would receive any new data. The main risk factors, in their opinion, should have been cardiovascular disease and kidney disease.
During the heat wave in Canada in 2021, people with schizophrenia had a 200% increased risk of death
The work showed that in patients with cardiovascular diseases, the risk of death during the heat wave was increased by 18%, this indicator is even higher in people with kidney disease – during the heat of 2021, they died 36% more often. But the highest risk of death was in people with mental illness. First of all, this concerned people with schizophrenia – their risk of death was increased by 200%.
Of all the people who died during a hot week in Canada, 8% suffered from schizophrenia. In other years, people diagnosed with schizophrenia, among those who died during the same period of time, were only 2.7 percent. But an even larger percentage of people with schizophrenia were among those who died, whose deaths in 2021 were attributed to high temperatures, according to medical services. There were more than 13% of such people. The authors of the work report this in the journal GeoHealth.
I must say that scientists have previously conducted studies that indicated a high risk of death from heat for people with schizophrenia, but they were ignored. For example, in Phoenix, the state capital of Arizona, a clear relationship was found between high temperatures and hospitalizations of people with schizophrenia. However, during heat waves, the government and health workers do not pay attention to mentally ill people, trying to save people from other vulnerable categories first.
In schizophrenia, the hypothalamus, which is responsible for thermoregulation of the body, is often damaged.
Why people with schizophrenia often die from the heat
The exact reason why people with schizophrenia turned out to be the most vulnerable is still unknown to scientists, since studies have not yet been conducted on this subject, but there are some assumptions. According to one of them, the hypothalamus is often affected in schizophrenia. This part of the brain is responsible for thermoregulation through sweating. Accordingly, due to its damage, the body cannot withstand high temperatures.
In addition, some antipsychotic drugs that are prescribed for this condition can increase body temperature. Combined with extreme heat, this can be deadly. Plus, the disease affects the ability to make informed decisions or feel unwell. Also, do not forget that schizophrenia is often associated with isolation and homelessness.
High mortality from heat may be associated with drugs prescribed for mental illness
But whatever the cause, the results of this study suggest that people with mental illness need special attention during heatwaves. Especially considering that the situation with the temperature in summer will worsen every year due to global warming.
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Although the results of this study came as a surprise to scientists, it has long been known that global warming in general is more dangerous for human health than the coronavirus pandemic. The situation with patients with schizophrenia is another confirmation of this.
