Date of Conferral

2022

Degree

Ph.D.

School

Public Health

Advisor

James Rohrer

Abstract

AbstractPolydipsia is found in 20% of inpatients with chronic severe mental disorders. Of this, 80% are diagnosed with chronic schizophrenia, hence polydipsia is strongly associated with chronic schizophrenia. Despite the prevalence and serious health complications of coexisting polydipsia in this population, its current method of detection is flawed. The purpose of this quantitative study was to accurately identify comorbid polydipsia in schizophrenia using periodic weight change and hyponatremia. The Wilson’s complexity theory and primary data were used to attempt to explain the relationship between weight change and hyponatremia and polydipsia, in a cross-sectional study design. The dependent variable was polydipsia, and the primary independent variables were weight change and hyponatremia. The covariates were age, age of onset, ethnicity, gender, duration of illness, length of hospital stay, and comorbidities in schizophrenic cases selected. The other likely ways of screening for polydipsia such as urine specific gravity and polydipsia screening tool are either prone to significant biases or too cumbersome, hence impact accuracy. Using genetic biomarkers seem promising but it was not the focus of this study. The findings of this study indicated that weight change and hyponatremia accurately detected excessive water intoxication or polydipsia, especially when it coexisted with schizophrenia. This knowledge could promote the confidence of mental and primary health workers to take ownership and improve quality of life, from early detection of polydipsia and easier access to health care.

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