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Age at onset of mental disorders worldwide: large-scale meta-analysis of 192 epidemiological studies

  • Marco Solmi
  • , Joaquim Radua
  • , Miriam Olivola
  • , Enrico Croce
  • , Livia Soardo
  • , Gonzalo Salazar de Pablo
  • , Jae Il Shin
  • , James B. Kirkbride
  • , Peter Jones
  • , Jae Han Kim
  • , Jong Yeob Kim
  • , Andrè F. Carvalho
  • , Mary V. Seeman
  • , Christoph U. Correll
  • , Paolo Fusar-Poli*
  • *Corresponding author for this work
  • University of Padua
  • University of Zaragoza; Instituto de Investigacion Sanitaria de Aragon (IIS) and Centro de Investigacion Biomedica en Red de Salud Mental (CIBERSAM), Zaragoza, Spain.
  • Karolinska Institute
  • University of Ferrara
  • University of Pavia
  • Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria Gregorio Marañón
  • Yonsei University
  • UCL University College London
  • Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust
  • Deakin University
  • University Health Network, Toronto
  • Zucker Hillside Hospital
  • Zucker School of Medicine
  • Feinstein Institute for Medical Research
  • Institute for Radiology, CCM
  • SLaM South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust
  • UCL Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
  • King's College London

Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

3121 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Promotion of good mental health, prevention, and early intervention before/at the onset of mental disorders improve outcomes. However, the range and peak ages at onset for mental disorders are not fully established. To provide robust, global epidemiological estimates of age at onset for mental disorders, we conducted a PRISMA/MOOSE-compliant systematic review with meta-analysis of birth cohort/cross-sectional/cohort studies, representative of the general population, reporting age at onset for any ICD/DSM-mental disorders, identified in PubMed/Web of Science (up to 16/05/2020) (PROSPERO:CRD42019143015). Co-primary outcomes were the proportion of individuals with onset of mental disorders before age 14, 18, 25, and peak age at onset, for any mental disorder and across International Classification of Diseases 11 diagnostic blocks. Median age at onset of specific disorders was additionally investigated. Across 192 studies (n = 708,561) included, the proportion of individuals with onset of any mental disorders before the ages of 14, 18, 25 were 34.6%, 48.4%, 62.5%, and peak age was 14.5 years (k = 14, median = 18, interquartile range (IQR) = 11–34). For diagnostic blocks, the proportion of individuals with onset of disorder before the age of 14, 18, 25 and peak age were as follows: neurodevelopmental disorders: 61.5%, 83.2%, 95.8%, 5.5 years (k = 21, median=12, IQR = 7–16), anxiety/fear-related disorders: 38.1%, 51.8%, 73.3%, 5.5 years (k = 73, median = 17, IQR = 9–25), obsessive-compulsive/related disorders: 24.6%, 45.1%, 64.0%, 14.5 years (k = 20, median = 19, IQR = 14–29), feeding/eating disorders/problems: 15.8%, 48.1%, 82.4%, 15.5 years (k = 11, median = 18, IQR = 15–23), conditions specifically associated with stress disorders: 16.9%, 27.6%, 43.1%, 15.5 years (k = 16, median = 30, IQR = 17–48), substance use disorders/addictive behaviours: 2.9%, 15.2%, 48.8%, 19.5 years (k = 58, median = 25, IQR = 20–41), schizophrenia-spectrum disorders/primary psychotic states: 3%, 12.3%, 47.8%, 20.5 years (k = 36, median = 25, IQR = 20–34), personality disorders/related traits: 1.9%, 9.6%, 47.7%, 20.5 years (k = 6, median = 25, IQR = 20–33), and mood disorders: 2.5%, 11.5%, 34.5%, 20.5 years (k = 79, median = 31, IQR = 21–46). No significant difference emerged by sex, or definition of age of onset. Median age at onset for specific mental disorders mapped on a time continuum, from phobias/separation anxiety/autism spectrum disorder/attention deficit hyperactivity disorder/social anxiety (8-13 years) to anorexia nervosa/bulimia nervosa/obsessive-compulsive/binge eating/cannabis use disorders (17-22 years), followed by schizophrenia, personality, panic and alcohol use disorders (25-27 years), and finally post-traumatic/depressive/generalized anxiety/bipolar/acute and transient psychotic disorders (30-35 years), with overlap among groups and no significant clustering. These results inform the timing of good mental health promotion/preventive/early intervention, updating the current mental health system structured around a child/adult service schism at age 18.

Original languageEnglish
JournalMolecular Psychiatry
Volume27
Issue number1
Early online date2 Jun 2021
DOIs
Publication statusE-pub ahead of print - 2 Jun 2021

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

  1. SDG 3 - Good Health and Well-being
    SDG 3 Good Health and Well-being

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