Fremdaggressives Verhalten bei Patienten mit einer Schizophrenie-Spektrum-Störung in der Gefängnispsychiatrie

Violent behavior can be understood as a contextual, complex and social phenomenon. A number of studies have shown that the risk of aggressive behavior is increased for patients with schizophrenia-spectrum disorders. However, data on violent behavior in schizophrenia-spectrum disorders in a prison hospital is scarce. In order to characterize this group more specifically, a
database on aggressive behavior was set up in the Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy of the Berlin Prison Hospital. 225 treatment episodes were included of which in 118 cases violent behavior was documented. Older age, German citizenship, previous violent crimes and antipsychotic or antidepressant treatment within six months prior to admission had a protective effect on the occurrence of aggressive behavior during inpatient treatment. Alcohol and drug use disorders tended to be risk factors for aggressive behavior. Thus, the results in this prison psychiatric population correspond to the risk factors described in the literature. From these results, it can be deduced that optimising the availability of (psychopharmacological) treatment and offering specialized treatment for patients with comorbid substance use disorder may lead to violence prevention.