The co-occurrence of mental illness and somatic comorbidities is a major cause of increased morbidity and mortality within psychiatric patients, compared to the general population. This may be caused by an unhealthy lifestyle, side effects of psychotropic drugs and systematic barriers in healthcare provision. The underlying mechanisms remain under-investigated.

We systematically investigated relevant barriers and risk factors to the utilization of primary care among severe mentally ill outpatients.

In a cross-sectional analysis, the psychiatric as well as somatic diagnoses of inpatients of a German psychiatric community hospital were identified. Furthermore, somatic and psychiatric medication, blood values (HBA1C) and sociodemographic data of the patients were analyzed. The frequencies of the somatic diagnoses were presented according to psychiatric diagnoses. By a Chi-Square goodness-of-Fit Test the distribution of somatic diagnoses and drug classes were verified according to the total cohort as well as for each psychiatric diagnosis and in respect to sex.

Our results provide an overview of common comorbidities with regard to the psychiatric diagnosis. The medication, in relation to the recorded somatic comorbidities, as well as the blood values, allow a conclusion to be drawn about the extent and success of the treatment.

For the first time, real-life data on the somatic diagnoses and treatment of patients with a severe mental illness in a German hospital is presented. Our results will be used to create low-threshold interventions for the most relevant somatic comorbidities and to improve primary care of psychiatric patients through linking the care systems.

No significant relationships.

People followed at the department of psychiatry have a high prevalence of somatic pathologies that are generally not taken optimal care of in time, which implies excess mortality rate among these patients.

To study somatic comorbidities in patients followed at the department of psychiatry of the regional hospital of Gabes (Tunisia).

We conducted a retrospective, descriptive and analytical study carried out on a clinical population who consult for the first time at the psychiatry department at the Gabes regional hospital during the period from January 1st, 2010 to December 31, 2013. Sociodemographic, clinical and therapeutic data of the patients were assessed. Data were analysed using the software SPSS (20th edition).

The number of patients consulting for the first time at the psychiatry department during the study’s period was 1601 patients, with a mean age of 34 years and a sex ratio (M / F) of 0.96. Among these patients, 399 (24.9%) had somatic comorbidity. The most common somatic comorbidity was arterial hypertension (8.1% of patients, n=129 patients). Diabetes mellitus was ranked second with 99 patients (6.2%). The analytical study showed that depressive disorders were significantly more frequent in patients with hypertension (p<0.001), diabetes mellitus (p<0.001) and asthma (p=0.026).

Somatic comorbidities were frequent in patients followed by the department of psychiatry. Paying attention to somatic comorbidities must be part of the evaluation of these patients in order to coordinate effectively with the somatic doctors.