http://discussbipolar.com Blog to discuss being Bipolar Sat, 19 Mar 2011 07:01:35 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en Results from a survey conducted by the World Health Organization (WHO) in low-, middle-, and high-income countries show that people with serious mental health disorders earn, on average, one third less than people without mental health issues.Writing in the British Journal of Psychiatry, Ronald Kessler (Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, ... http://discussbipolar.com/2011/03/311/ Prenatal exposure to tobacco smoke is associated with an increased risk for psychiatric disorders in adolescence and young adulthood, researchers have found."Smoking during pregnancy has many harmful effects on the growing fetus, including impairment of fetal growth," explain Mikael Ekblad (Turku University Hospital, Finland) and team. "In recent years, smoking ... http://discussbipolar.com/2011/03/310/ Different risk factors are associated with the onset and persistence of subthreshold mania and depression symptoms in young people, researchers have found."Little is known about the factors that influence persistence of subthreshold expression of bipolar psychopathology," explain Marieke Wichers (Maastricht University, The Netherlands) and team.They add: "Insights into the causes ... http://discussbipolar.com/2011/03/309/ Around a quarter of patients with fibromyalgia also suffer from bipolar disorder, results from a US study suggest.Writing in the journal Bipolar Disorders, William Wilke, from the Cleveland Clinic Orthopedic and Rheumatologic Institute in Ohio, and team explain that the prevalence of lifetime depression in patients with fibromyalgia is known ... http://discussbipolar.com/2011/03/308/ Transient manic symptoms (TMS) are associated with an increased risk for conversion to bipolar spectrum disorder (BPSD) in children with depressive spectrum disorders (DSD), study results show.The findings also suggest that early multi-family psycho-educational psychotherapy may protect against conversion to BPSD in such children.Writing in the journal Bipolar Disorders, Mary ... http://discussbipolar.com/2011/03/307/ Results from a German study show that a single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) in the calcium channel, voltage-dependent, L-type, alpha 1C subunit (CACNA1C) gene is associated with brain-function deficits in mentally healthy volunteers.The findings, published in the Archives of General Psychiatry, also support previous genetic research linking the SNP to bipolar ... http://discussbipolar.com/2011/03/306/ Scandinavian researchers have found significant correlation between the number of manic episodes experienced and the extent of grey matter volume reduction in patients with bipolar disorder."Several investigations using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) have demonstrated anatomical abnormalities in the brain of patients with bipolar disorder," explain Carl Ekman (Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, ... http://discussbipolar.com/2011/03/305/ Schizoaffective disorder (SA) is a valid diagnosis in the early phase of psychotic conditions and defines a subgroup of patients with first episode psychotic mania."The validity of SA diagnosis has long been a matter of controversy and its delineation from bipolar I disorders has often been questioned," explain Philippe Conus ... http://discussbipolar.com/2011/03/304/ Patients with bipolar disorder (BD) with an initial mixed mood episode experience greater levels of morbidity over subsequent months than those with an initial episode of mania."Mixed-states involve complex admixtures of rapid alternations of mainly excited or mainly depressive states," explain Ross Baldessarini (Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA) and ... http://discussbipolar.com/2011/03/303/ In bipolar disorder patients with mania, those with mixed episodes, anxiety, or rapid cycling, as well as individuals at high risk for depression relapse, are more likely to receive antidepressants than other patients with the mood disorder, researchers have found."The primary goal of treatment of mania is to restore behavioral ... http://discussbipolar.com/2011/03/302/