WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - People aged 14 to 20 today are being diagnosed with psychotic disorders, including schizophrenia, more often than people born in earlier decades, according to a large study from Ontario that reviewed 30 years of data.
The study, published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal, analyzed health records of more than 12 million Ontario residents born between 1960 and 2009. Researchers focused on cases where a psychotic disorder was diagnosed after the age of 14.
Over the past 30 years, more than 152,000 people were diagnosed with a psychotic disorder. The study found that diagnosis rates among people aged 14 to 20 rose by 60 per cent. In contrast, rates among those aged 21 to 50 stayed the same or declined.
By age 20, about one in 180 people born between 2000 and 2004 had been diagnosed with a psychotic disorder. This is more than twice the rate seen among people born in the late 1970s at the same age. The numbers continued to rise in later years. Among people born in the early 1990s, about one in 75 had received a diagnosis by age 30, compared with about one in 100 among those born in the late 1970s.
The age at which symptoms first appear has also dropped. People born in the late 1970s were diagnosed at an average age of 25, while those born in the early 1990s were diagnosed around age 23. Each newer birth group shows signs of even earlier diagnosis.
The trend applies to both young men and women, though men continue to have higher rates overall. It appears across cities and rural areas and among all income groups.
However, the study had several limitations as it considered data from a specific region and time period. Further study is required to get a clearer picture.
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