title: Association between family history of mood disorders and clinical characteristics of bipolar disorder: results from the Brazilian bipolar research network.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To compare clinical characteristics of bipolar disorder (BD) in patients with and without a family history of mood disorders (FHMD) in a large sample from the Brazilian Research Network of Bipolar Disorders.
  
  
  METHODS
  Four-hundred eighty-eight DSM-IV BD patients participating in the Brazilian Research Network of Bipolar Disorders were included. Participants were divided between those with FHMD (n=230) and without FHMD (n=258). We compared these two groups on demographic and clinical variables and performed a logistic regression to identify which variables were most strongly associated with positive family history of mood disorders.
  
  
  RESULTS
  BD patients with FHMD presented with significantly higher lifetime prevalence of any anxiety disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, social phobia, substance abuse, and were more likely to present history of suicide attempts, family history of suicide attempts and suicide, and more psychiatric hospitalizations than BD patients without FHMD. Logistic regression showed that the variables most strongly associated with a positive FHMD were any comorbid anxiety disorder, comorbid substance abuse, and family history of suicide.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Cross-sectional study and verification of FHMD by indirect information.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  BD patients with FHMD differ from BD patients without FHMD in rates of comorbid anxiety disorder and substance abuse, number of hospitalizations and suicide attempts. As FHMD is routinely assessed in clinical practice, these findings may help to identify patients at risk for particular manifestations of BD and may point to a common, genetically determined neurobiological substrate that increases the risk of conditions such as comorbidities and suicidality in BD patients.
authors.affiliation: Bipolar Disorder Program (PROMAN), Department of Psychiatry, University of São Paulo Medical School, São Paulo, Brazil. Electronic address: angie.berutti@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Mariangeles
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Berutti
authors.affiliation: Bipolar Disorder Program (PROMAN), Department of Psychiatry, University of São Paulo Medical School, São Paulo, Brazil; Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Neuroscience, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, USA.
authors.forename: Fabiano G
authors.initials: FG
authors.lastname: Nery
authors.affiliation: Bipolar Disorder Program (PROMAN), Department of Psychiatry, University of São Paulo Medical School, São Paulo, Brazil.
authors.forename: Rodrigo
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Sato
authors.affiliation: Center for Treatment of Affective Disorders (CETHA), Department of Psychiatry, Federal University of Bahia, Salvador, Brazil.
authors.forename: Angela
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Scippa
authors.affiliation: Bipolar Disorder Program (PROTAHBI), Department of Psychiatry, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil.
authors.forename: Flavio
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Kapczinski
authors.affiliation: Bipolar Disorder Program (PROMAN), Department of Psychiatry, University of São Paulo Medical School, São Paulo, Brazil.
authors.forename: Beny
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Lafer
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001008:Anxiety Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics / Q000523:psychology*; D001714:Bipolar Disorder / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics / Q000523:psychology*; D001938:Brazil; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D015897:Comorbidity; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015995:Prevalence; D012306:Risk; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics / Q000523:psychology*; D013405:Suicide; D013406:Suicide, Attempted / Q000523:psychology
keywords: Bipolar disorder; Comorbidity; Family history; Impulsivity; Mood disorder