Neurocognitive function in bipolar disorder: a comparison between bipolar I and II disorder and matched controls

BMC Psychiatry

Research Article

Anette GM Johansson¹  Carl-Johan Ekman¹  Björn Hultman¹  Clara Figueras²  Erik Pålsson²  Josefin Östlind²  Mikael Landén³ 

[1] Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden;Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden;Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden;Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden;

关键词: Bipolar Disorder;    Young Mania Rating Scale;    Verbal Fluency Test;    Young Mania Rating Scale Score;    Bipolar Type;   

DOI  :  10.1186/1471-244X-13-165

 received in 2013-01-10, accepted in 2013-05-25,  发布年份 2013

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundCognitive deficits have been documented in patients with bipolar disorder. Further, it has been suggested that the degree and type of cognitive impairment differ between bipolar I and bipolar II disorder, but data is conflicting and remains inconclusive. This study aimed to clarify the suggested differences in cognitive impairment between patients with bipolar I and II disorder in a relatively large, clinically stable sample while controlling for potential confounders.Methods67 patients with bipolar I disorder, 43 with bipolar II disorder, and 86 randomly selected population-based healthy controls were compared. A number of neuropsychological tests were administered, assessing verbal and visual memory and executive functions. Patients were in a stable phase during testing.ResultsPatients with bipolar type I and type II were cognitively impaired compared to healthy controls, but there were no statistically significant differences between the two subtypes. The strongest predictor of cognitive impairment within the patient group was current antipsychotic treatment.ConclusionsThe present study suggests that the type and degree of cognitive dysfunction is similar in bipolar I and II patients. Notably, treatment with antipsychotics - but not a history of psychosis - was associated with more severe cognitive impairment. Given that patients with bipolar I disorder are more likely to be on antipsychotic drugs, this might explain why some previous studies have found that patients with type I bipolar disorder are more cognitively impaired than those with type II.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© Pålsson et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. 2013