Preliminary findings regarding overweight and obesity in pediatric bipolar disorder.
OBJECTIVE
Overweight/obesity is highly prevalent among adults with bipolar disorder and has been associated with illness severity. Little is known regarding overweight/obesity among youth with bipolar disorder.


METHODS
Subjects were 348 youths aged 7 to 17 years who met DSM-IV criteria for bipolar I or bipolar II disorder or study-operationalized criteria for bipolar disorder not otherwise specified and were enrolled in the Course and Outcome of Bipolar Illness in Youth study. Age- and sex-adjusted body mass index was computed according to International Obesity Task Force cut points, based on self- and parent-reported height and weight, to determine overweight/obesity. The study was conducted from October 2000 to July 2006.


RESULTS
Overweight/obesity was prevalent among 42% of subjects. The most robust predictors of overweight/obesity in a logistic regression model were younger age, nonwhite race, lifetime physical abuse, substance use disorders, psychiatric hospitalizations, and exposure to ≥ 2 medication classes associated with weight gain.


CONCLUSIONS
The prevalence of overweight/obesity among youth with bipolar disorder may be modestly greater than in the general population. Moreover, similar to adults, overweight/obesity among youth with bipolar disorder may be associated with increased psychiatric burden. These preliminary findings underscore the importance of early identification of overweight/obesity among youth with bipolar disorder. Future studies are needed to clarify the direction of the associations between overweight/obesity and the identified predictors and to compare the prevalence of overweight/obesity among youth with bipolar disorder versus other psychiatric disorders.
Goldstein
Benjamin I
BI
Department of Psychiatry, Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA, USA. goldsteinbi@upmc.edu
Birmaher
Boris
B
Axelson
David A
DA
Goldstein
Tina R
TR
Esposito-Smythers
Christianne
C
Strober
Michael A
MA
Hunt
Jeffrey
J
Leonard
Henrietta
H
Gill
Mary Kay
MK
Iyengar
Satish
S
Grimm
Colleen
C
Yang
Mei
M
Ryan
Neal D
ND
Keller
Martin B
MB
D000293:Adolescent; D000367:Age Factors; D018692:Antimanic Agents / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use; D014150:Antipsychotic Agents / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use; D001714:Bipolar Disorder / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000453:epidemiology*; D001827:Body Height; D001835:Body Weight; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control; D002648:Child; D002649:Child Abuse / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D015897:Comorbidity; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004359:Drug Therapy, Combination; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009765:Obesity / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000453:epidemiology*; D050177:Overweight / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000453:epidemiology*; D012307:Risk Factors; D013223:Statistics as Topic
D018692:Antimanic Agents; D014150:Antipsychotic Agents