J Korean Med Sci.  2010 Jun;25(6):912-917. 10.3346/jkms.2010.25.6.912.

Differences of Clinical Characteristics and Phenotypes between Prepubertal- and Adolescent-Onset Bipolar Disorders

• Song M
• Yoon H
• Choi I
• Hong SD
• Joung YS

• KMID: 2150872
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.3346/jkms.2010.25.6.912

Abstract

The aim of this study is to describe the clinical characteristics of prepubertal- and adolescent-onset bipolar disorder (BD) and to identify any clinical differences between patients with prepubertal- and adolescent-onset BD. We analyzed the clinical records of 53 inpatients with BD. These patients were divided into prepubertal-onset and adolescent-onset groups. We also divided the subjects into narrow, intermediate, and broad phenotypes according to the definitions proposed by Leibenluft and colleagues. Of the total sample, 16 patients (30.2%) were in the prepubertal-onset group and 37 (69.8%) were in the adolescent-onset group. Patients with prepubertal-onset BD were more likely to display an insidious clinical presentation, atypical features, and comorbid psychopathology. And the majority of the subjects, especially in the prepubertal-onset group, were classified under the intermediate and broad phenotypes. These results suggest that the clinical presentation of BD with prepubertal-onset is different from that of adolescent-onset BD. It is inferred that a significant number of patients with prepubertal- and adolescent-onset BD do not meet DSM-IV criteria for mania or hypomania from the results of this study.

Keyword

Clinical Characteristics; Prepubertal; Adolescent; Bipolar Disorder

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