Schizophrenia is still one of the most difficult diseases to treat, whose direct and indirect costs remain high, both for the patient, family and society.

The duration of the untreated psychosis is one of the factors likely to influence the evolution of this disease. To know the factors that may lengthen the period of care would improve the evolutionary course of the disease.

Determine the factors contributing to the delay in treatment of schizophrenia within the Tunisian population.

Retrospective study of patients in Razi hospital with schizophrenia admitted in 2004 and 2005.

Our sample consisted of 91 patients.

The poor family support (p = 0,032), the death of the mother (p < 0.00005), the lack of social security coverage (p = 0,025) and the large families (p = 0,006) are the modifiable factors highlighted by our study, which contribute significantly to extend the duration of the untreated psychosis.

Other factors that were correlated to longer period of support are: advanced age of onset of disorders (p = 0.013), family history of psychiatric illness (p = 0,03) and of schizophrenia (p = 0,04) and disorganized form of schizophrenia (p = 0,049).

We can stipulate that the application of certain measurements like the improvement and the extension of the social coverage to the poorest classes and most marginalized as well as the fight against the stigmatization of the schizophrenic patients and the mentally ills in general would be more than useful.