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Dr Mina Fazel writes for 'The Mental Elf' in response to a new paper published in the BMJ.

 

The current global refugee crisis with large numbers arriving in the same time frame, and from a similar region to a range of high and low-income contexts gives an opportunity to conduct a definitive study on the post-migration influence on diaspora. This will help us unpick the specific risk that being a 'refugee' might have and better enable us to understand the differential effect of post-migration environments. Dr Mina Fazel

 

'The relationship of migration to non-affective, schizophrenia-like psychosis has been a key question in epidemiological studies of mental illness. Migrants have higher rates of non-affective psychosis but the causes are complex and include both push factors (making it more likely for someone developing a paranoid illness to choose to leave their country of origin) and also post-migration factors that might include social isolation, stigma and a range of other psychosocial stressors.

'A new study published today in the BMJ sought to clarify the relationship further by comparing rates of non-affective psychosis in the Swedish population by comparing native-born Swedes (88.4% of sample) to refugee (1.8%) and non-refugee migrants (9.8%) coming from 4 different parts of the world. The Swedish population database gives a unique opportunity to gather information on large numbers.

'Existing studies on forced/refugee migrant populations have highlighted the increased prevalence of depressive disorders and post-traumatic stress disorder.'

 

Read the full blog post on The Mental Elf

Read more about Dr Mina Fazel.

Read comment from Dr Mina Fazel in Scientific American: 'Refugees Suffer a Higher Rate of Psychotic Disorders'.

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