Bipolar Disorder

After thorough examination and history-taking, bipolar II disorder was suspected in a 19-year-old college student. What psychiatric screening tools might be used to further confirm the diagnosis for this patient?

With the multitude of nutritional products available to patients via the Internet and health-food stores, psychiatrists need to be prepared to respond to questions from patients about the value of these supplements.

There is very little evidence for the efficacy of antidepressants in bipolar disorder, particularly for longer-term use. However, there are at least 9 alternatives to conventional antidepressants.

What is the natural course of bipolar disorder in pediatric cases? Take the quiz and learn more.

This case study of a 21-year-old woman-referred by a relative because of long-standing severe interpersonal, academic, and occupational impairment-illustrates the importance of screening patients with brief episodes of depression for mixed features.

A look into longer-term clinical and psychosocial outcomes of depressive disorder in early adulthood, as well as clinical and demographic variables associated with recurrence and lack of remission.

Do children with manic symptoms continue to experience mania? How common are suicidal ideation and attempts in bipolar youth? How severe is bipolar depression in children and adolescents? Answers to these and other questions from recent studies here. . .

The relationship between bipolar disorder and ADHD remains unclear; however, this combined condition may represent an important genetic and clinical subtype with distinct psychopathology, familiality, and treatment response.

As practicing physicians, we constantly ask ourselves when and where to alert patients to bad possibilities that may occur in the future. More in this installment of "Why Psychiatrist Are Physicians First," by Sharon Packer, MD.

Mood switching is not uncommon and it is much more prevalent in depressed juveniles than in depressed adults, and there is a large apparent excess of antidepressant-associated switching over reported spontaneous diagnostic changes to bipolar disorder. Details here.

Why is it important to exercise caution in the treatment of bipolar depression, especially in young women? Take the quiz and learn more.

Bipolar disorder is a longitudinal disorder defined by multiple episodes that may occur years apart. As a result, the proper diagnosis requires careful evaluation of both the current symptoms and the patient’s history.

This child's behaviors suggested ADHD-combined or primarily hyperactive type and conduct disorder. However, there was a strong history of trauma and affective disturbance. A structured interview format indicated that he formally met criteria for both PTSD and mixed episode. Without this format, features defining these disorders might have been missed and the child treated only for ADHD.

Some attorneys have argued that SSRIs cause serious adverse events, capable of compelling defendants to engage in strikingly complex criminal behavior. On close examination, however, these phenomena may be clearly distinguished from criminal behavior.

Behavioral problems “masquerade” as physical symptoms. The time has come to treat the whole patient and to make psychiatry part and parcel of primary care.

Most persons who use CAM modalities to self-treat a mental health problem take prescription antidepressants concurrently. Combined use can result in serious supplement-drug interactions.

What is truth? In the end, it is not a forensic psychiatrist's place to judge. He or she is a cog in a bigger machine that is supposed to treat psychiatric illness.

A risk to benefit ratio of treatment must be established to determine the optimal treatment for perimenopausal depression. Untreated depression during the perimenopause exacerbates heart disease, diabetes, and osteoporosis. Details about management options here.

While the growing evidence base for the positive effects of lithium on brain health is compelling, the evidence remains preliminary.

Dr Gerard Sanacora discusses novel antidepressant agents with potential clinical relevance for the treatment of major depressive disorder and bipolar disorder.

A recent meta-analysis supports evidence of the effectiveness of the fixed olanzapine/fluoxetine combination (Symbyax) in treating the depressive phase of bipolar disorder. Response was ranked higher, but with no more adverse effects, than with treatment with olanzapine alone.

Hypothyroidism is a common clinical disorder that psychiatrists frequently encounter. However, symptoms of thyroid dysfunction are often vague and nonspecific, which can lead to delayed or missed diagnosis.

This article highlights evidence-based treatment with herbs and nutrients with good tolerability and potential benefit when integrated into psychiatric practices.

Before recommending any natural product to a patient with bipolar disorder, the clinician should be familiar with important safety considerations. This article summarizes provisional guidelines for the use of CAM and integrative therapies in patients with bipolar disorder.

The aggregation of psychiatric diagnoses in individual psychiatric patients, ie, the presence of multiple disorders in one individual, is a curious and sometimes disturbing observation in psychiatry.