Objective: Schizophrenia is a severe mental disorder. Its prevalence appears inconsistent in different regions of China; thus, we conducted this meta-analysis to estimate the prevalence of schizophrenia in mainland China.
Method: Studies on the prevalence of schizophrenia in mainland China were identified from electronic databases up to July 2013. Meta-analysis was used for prevalence of schizophrenia estimate.
Results: For lifetime prevalence of schizophrenia, prevalence of 5.44 per 1000 (overall), 5.33 per 1000 (males), 5.51 per 1000 (females), 6.60 per 1000 (urban) and 4.73 per 1000 (rural) were estimated; there was no significant difference between males and females, while prevalence for urban dwellers was higher than for rural (OR=1.44, 95%CI: 1.30-1.59). For point prevalence of schizophrenia, prevalence of 4.62 per 1000 (overall), 4.63 per 1000 (males), 4.95 per 1000 (females), 5.15 per 1000 (urban) and 4.44 per 1000 (rural) were estimated; no statistical difference was found in males and females, but prevalence for urban dwellers was higher than for rural (OR=1.20; 95%CI: 1.02-1.41).
Conclusion: The prevalence estimate results were consistent with the international prevalence estimate of schizophrenia in mainland China. There was no significant difference between males and females, while prevalence for urban dwellers was higher than for rural.
Keywords: China; epidemiology; meta-analysis; prevalence; schizophrenia.
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.