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Citation
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Valentí M, Pacchiarotti I, Undurraga J, Bonnín CM, Popovic D, Goikolea JM, Torrent C, Hidalgo-Mazzei D, Colom F, Vieta E. Bipolar Disord. 2015; 17(5): 549-559. |
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Affiliation
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Bipolar Disorders Program, Clinical Institute of Neurosciences, Hospital Clínic Barcelona, IDIBAPS, CIBERSAM, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. |
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Abstract
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OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to investigate the clinical factors associated with the development of rapid cycling, as well as to elucidate the role of antidepressants.
METHODS: The present study (NCT01503489) is a prospective, naturalistic cohort study conducted in a sample of 289 patients diagnosed with bipolar disorder followed and treated for up to 14 years. The patients were divided into two groups on the basis of the development of a rapid cycling course (n = 48) or no development of such a course (n = 241), and compared regarding sociodemographic, clinical, and outcome variables.
RESULTS: Among the 289 patients, 48 (16.6%) developed a rapid cycling course during the follow-up. Several differences were found between the two groups, but after performing Cox regression analysis, only atypical depressive symptoms (p = 0.001), age at onset (p = 0.015), and number of suicide attempts (p = 0.030) persisted as significantly associated with the development of a rapid cycling course.
CONCLUSIONS: The development of rapid cycling during the course of bipolar disorder is associated with a tendency to chronicity, with a poorer outcome, and with atypical depressive symptomatology. Our study also suggests that the development of rapid cycling is associated with a higher use of antidepressants.
Language: en |