Financial Services > Health lnsurance > Health Conditions > Schizophrenia - UK Health Insurance

Schizophrenia

Schizophrenia is a brain disease, which may be chronic, acute and cause disability. The person may have disordered thinking which may make him or her unable to function normally in social life.

Target Group

Schizophrenia is not restricted to any class, race, community, culture or social class of people. It can affect both the genders equally (both men and woman are prone to it).

Type of Ailment

It is a mental illness so the person is not aware of the patients behavior. His thoughts, feelings and actions may not co ordinate at all. The patient's irrational behavior and disturbed emotions may be the consequence of the person's impaired sense of reality.

Symptoms

Most of the Schizophrenia symptoms are related to human behavior:

  • There might be outrageous and confusing changes in behavior
  • A person might suffer from hallucination
  • There is a lack of sentiments, interest and motivation
  • The person might feels somebody watching them or plotting against them
  • The person might feels that others are trying to control his thoughts and emotions
  • The person's speech, thinking and behavior do not co ordinate
  • The person may freeze like a statue or may become restless

Affected Area

Since Schizophrenia is a mental ailment the area usually affected is the brain.

Causes

The precise cause of Schizophrenia is known and hence cannot prevent it from occurring. Genetic and behavior disorder may lead to Schizophrenia. Any emotional trauma may also trigger the illness.

Risk to Others

People who have a close relative with schizophrenia are more prone to develop the disorder than the people who have no relatives with the ailment. There's evidence of a genetic predisposition. The risk is high if a child has a schizophrenic parent (10%) or identical twin (50%). Besides this it may be difficult for the family members to cope with the patient's psychotic behavior.

Risk to Sufferer

People suffering from this illness may get violent and harm themselves or others. Trying to commit suicide is a serious danger in people who have schizophrenia. If an individual tries to commit suicide or threatens to do so, professional help should be sought right away.

Treatment

Patients may be treated with medication in the form of tablets or long-acting injections. It is not possible to tell in advance as to which medication will act the best for an individual. Drug adjustments may be needed. Counseling may be required for people suffering from this disease. Society support is very important for the patients.

Choose a letter

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S TU V
Health Insurance Partners