Schizophrenia Prevalence and Associated Factors in Psychiatry Outpatients at Mankweng Hospital

Background: Schizophrenia is a chronic, disabling psychiatric disorder affecting approximately 24 million people worldwide.Despite its global impact, epidemiological data on schizophrenia remain limited in developing regions, particularly in Africa.Objective: This study aimed to determine the prevalence of schizophrenia and examine its associated sociodemographic, medical, and psychiatric characteristics among adult outpatients at Mankweng Hospital in 2022.Methods: A retrospective, quantitative, cross-sectional study was conducted using 353 clinical records selected through simple random sampling.Data on demographics, social factors, and medical and psychiatric history were collected using a structured form and analyzed with descriptive statistics.Results: Schizophrenia was diagnosed in 125 patients (35.4%), with 16 cases (4.5%) classified as treatment-resistant.The typical profile of a schizophrenia outpatient was single (99.2%),African (100%), male (64.8%), aged 26-35 years (31.2%),Christian (67.2%), with high school education (80.0%), unemployed (90.4%), and receiving a disability grant (64.8%).Medical comorbidities occurred in 26.4%, most commonly hypertension (17.7%).Psychiatric comorbidities occurred in 25.6%, most frequently substance-related disorders (20.0%).Conclusions: The socio-demographic profile aligned with the existing literature, but prevalence in this study was higher, with lower rates of treatment resistance, medical comorbidities, and substance use.Further large-scale, long-term studies are recommended to explore prevalence patterns, treatment resistance, and comorbidity in schizophrenia.