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Kilbourne AM, Cornelius JR, Han X, Haas GL, Salloum I, Conigliaro J, Pincus HA. General-medical conditions in older patients with serious mental illness. The American journal of geriatric psychiatry : official journal of the American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry. 2005 Mar 1; 13(3):250-4.
OBJECTIVE: The burden of medical comorbidities was compared between older ( > or = 60 years) and younger patients with serious mental illness. METHODS: Patients (N = 8,083) diagnosed with schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, or bipolar disorder in 2001 were identified from VA facilities in the mid-Atlantic region. Medical comorbidities were identified by an ICD-9-based clinical classification algorithm. RESULTS: Older, versus younger, patients were more likely to be diagnosed with cardiovascular or pulmonary conditions, and less likely to be diagnosed with substance-use disorders or hepatic conditions. CONCLUSIONS: More aggressive detection and management of general-medical comorbidities in older patients with serious mental illness is paramount.