Comment in:

Evid Based Ment Health. 2007 May;10(2):63.

Controlled, blindly rated, direct-interview family study of a prepubertal and early-adolescent bipolar I disorder phenotype: morbid risk, age at onset, and comorbidity.

Department of Psychiatry, Washington University in St Louis, St Louis, MO 63110-1093, USA. gellerb@medicine.wustl.edu

CONTEXT: A key question is whether a prepubertal and early-adolescent bipolar I disorder phenotype (PEA-BP-I) is the same illness as adult BP-I. This question arises because of the greater severity, longer current episode duration, preponderance of mania, and high rates of ultradian rapid cycling and comorbid attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in PEA-BP-I. OBJECTIVES: To examine morbid risk (MR) of BP-I in first-degree relatives of PEA-BP-I, ADHD, and healthy control probands, as well as imprinting, sibling recurrence risk, and anticipation. DESIGN: Controlled, blind direct interview. There were no family psychopathology exclusions for any proband group. SETTING: University medical school research unit. PARTICIPANTS: First-degree relatives 6 years and older (n = 690) of 219 probands (95 with PEA-BP-I, 47 with ADHD, and 77 healthy controls). The PEA-BP-I and ADHD probands were obtained by consecutive new case ascertainment, and healthy controls were from a random survey; proband diagnoses were validated via 4-year prospective follow-up. The PEA-BP-I probands had a mean +/- SD age of 10.8 +/- 2.6 years.Main Outcome Measure Morbid risk. RESULTS: The MR of BP-I was higher in relatives of PEA-BP-I probands compared with ADHD or healthy controls (P<.001 for both); the MR in relatives of ADHD and healthy controls was similar. The MR of BP-I in relatives with ADHD was higher (P<.001) and age at onset of BP-I was younger in parents with ADHD than in those without (P<.001). The MR of BP-I in relatives with oppositional, conduct, or antisocial disorders was higher than in those without (P<.001). Anticipation was evidenced by a younger age at onset of BP-I in probands than in their parents (P<.001). No imprinting was found. CONCLUSIONS: Findings support that PEA-BP-I and adult BP-I are the same diathesis, 7 to 8x greater familiality in child vs adult BP-I, and family study validation of PEA-BP-I, including its differentiation from ADHD.

PMID: 17015815 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]