People with bipolar disorder in Brazil are more likely to be obese than the general population, say researchers in findings that emphasize the importance of early detection and treatment of obesity and the metabolic syndrome among such patients in developing countries.

Previous studies conducted in the USA and other developed countries have shown an “alarmingly” high prevalence of obesity and the metabolic syndrome in patients with bipolar disorder, explain Karla Mathias de Almeida and colleagues from the University of São Paulo School of Medicine in Brazil.

But they add that “little is known about the prevalence of these conditions in patients with bipolar disorder in developing countries,” which have lower overall levels of obesity compared with developed countries.

The team therefore studied the prevalence of obesity and the metabolic syndrome among 84 Brazilian outpatients, aged at least 18 years, with bipolar disorder who were participating in the Bipolar Research Program at University of São Paulo.

Patients were considered overweight if their body mass index (BMI) was 25??”29.99 kg/m² and obese if their BMI was more than 30 kg/m².

The metabolic syndrome was defined by the presence of at least three of the following: a waist circumference of >102 cm in men or >88 cm in women; elevated triglycerides (? 150 mg/dl); reduced high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (<40 mg/dl in men or <50 mg/dl in women); elevated blood pressure (systolic blood pressure ? 130 mmHg or diastolic blood pressure ? 85 mmHg); and elevated fasting glucose (? 100 mg/dl).

The researchers found that 27 (32.0%) bipolar patients were overweight and 30 (35.7%) were obese. The prevalence of obesity among the patients was significantly higher than that in the Brazilian population (8.8??”13.0%), notes the team.

Nearly one-third (28.6%) of patients also met criteria for the metabolic syndrome, which the researchers say is similar to that in the Brazilian population, (20.0??”29.8%).

“Our data suggest that the higher prevalence of obesity among patients with bipolar disorder is a cause for concern not only in developed countries but may also apply for developing countries,” de Almeida and team conclude in the journal Acta Neuropsychiatrica.

They add: “In the interest of early detection and treatment of the metabolic syndrome and obesity, psychiatrists should routinely assess metabolic parameters and weight gain in patients with bipolar disorder.”

MedWire (www.medwire-news.md) is an independent clinical news service provided by Current Medicine Group, a part of Springer Science+Business Media. © Current Medicine Group Ltd; 2009

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