ARE THERE PATIENTS WITH LATE-ONSET SCHIZOPHRENIA IN STATE HOSPITALS

Diagnoses of all individuals admitted between 1989 and 1991 to a State of Illinois Hospital were examined to determine the prevalence of pat ients meeting DSM-III-R criteria for late-onset schizophrenia. Four pr evalence rates were determined for each year based on the frequency of late-onset patients in (1) total psychiatric admissions, (2) total ad missions over age 45, (3) admissions with diagnoses of schizophrenia, and (4) admissions over age 45 and diagnosed schizophrenia. Results sh owed that the mean (across the three years) of the four prevalence rat es of late-onset schizophrenia ranged from 0.24% to 4.1%. This range i s far below prevalence rates on hospitalized patients previously repor ted in the literature (6 to 34%). Reasons for this discrepancy are dis cussed.