'Bipolarity' in bipolar disorder: distribution of manic and depressive symptoms in a treated population.
Cross-sectional analysis of 441 individuals with bipolar disorder treated at a US health maintenance organisation investigated the distribution of manic and depressive symptomsin that illness. Clinically significant depressive symptoms occurred in 94.1% of those with (hypo)mania, while 70.1% in a depressive episode had clinically significant manic symptoms. DSM-unrecognised depression-plus-hypomania was over twice as prevalent as DSM-recognised mixed episodes. Depressive symptoms were unimodally distributed in (hypo)mania. Depressive and manic symptoms were positively, not inversely, correlated, and their co-occurrence was associated with worse quality of life. Implications for the DSM and ICD nosological systems are discussed.
Bauer
Mark S
MS
VAMC-116R, 830 Chalkstone Avenue, Providence, RI 02908-4799, USA. mark_bauer@brown.edu
Simon
Gregory E
GE
Ludman
Evette
E
Unützer
Jurgen
J
D001714:Bipolar Disorder / Q000523:psychology*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003863:Depression / Q000523:psychology; D039721:Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D009626:Terminology as Topic