Objective: We studied a sample of schizophrenia out-patients to test the hypotheses that serum homocysteine concentrations would correlate positively with measures of glucose metabolism.
Method: Subjects underwent a nutritional assessment and fasting plasma, serum insulin and homocysteine tests.
Results: Males had a significantly higher homocysteine levels than females (7.69 +/- 1.42 microM vs. 6.63 +/- 1.40 microM; P = 0.02). Comparing subjects with normal fasting glucose (NFG) (glucose < 100 mg/dl) and impaired fasting glucose (IFG) (> or = 100 mg/dl) subjects with IFG (mean 8.2 +/- 1.5 microM) had significantly higher homocysteine levels than those with NFG (mean 7.2 +/- 1.4 microM, P = 0.03). IFG was also associated with greater mean values for a Homeostatic Model Assessment-Insulin Resistance (HOMA-IR) (P = 0.002) and diastolic blood pressure (P = 0.045).
Conclusion: The group with IFG had higher fasting serum homocysteine concentrations than those with NFG which supports a connection to an important cardiovascular risk factor.