Prevalence of bipolar disorder in the general population: a Reappraisal Study of the Netherlands Mental Health Survey and Incidence Study.
OBJECTIVE
The Netherlands Mental Health Survey and Incidence Study (NEMESIS) is a Dutch population study using a fully structured interview (Composite International Diagnostic Interview, CIDI), administered by trained interviewers. Based on all three assessments of NEMESIS, 2.4% of the respondents were identified with lifetime bipolar disorder (DSM-III-R). The primary aim of the study was to estimate the prevalence of bipolar disorder in the same population based on a semistructured interview administered by clinicians.


METHODS
Seventy-four persons identified with a lifetime CIDI/DSM-III-R bipolar disorder and 40 persons with a major depressive disorder (MDD) were reinterviewed with the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM (SCID).


RESULTS
Based on the SCID, 30 of 74 respondents with a CIDI/DSM-III-R bipolar disorder and eight of 40 respondents with MDD met DSM-IV criteria for bipolar disorder or cyclothymia, corresponding with an adjusted lifetime prevalence in these groups of 1% (95% CI: 0.7-1.3%) and 4.2% (95% CI: 1.6-6.9%) respectively.


CONCLUSIONS
Compared with the SCID, the CIDI on the one hand overdiagnoses bipolar disorder but on the other hand underdiagnoses bipolar disorder.
Regeer
E J
EJ
Altrecht Institute for Mental Health Care, 3512 PC Utrecht, The Netherlands. e.regeer@altrecht.nl
ten Have
M
M
Rosso
M L
ML
Hakkaart-van Roijen
L
L
Vollebergh
W
W
Nolen
W A
WA
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001714:Bipolar Disorder / Q000453:epidemiology*; D039721:Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders; D016021:Epidemiologic Studies; D005260:Female; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D007406:Interview, Psychological; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009426:Netherlands / Q000453:epidemiology; D015995:Prevalence