Title
Characteristics of children with juvenile bipolar disorder or disruptive behavior disorders and negative mood: can they be distinguished in the clinical setting?
UMMS Affiliation
Department of Psychiatry
Publication Date
2012-11-01
Document Type
Article
Subjects
Adolescent; Affect; Attention Deficit and Disruptive Behavior Disorders; Bipolar Disorder; Child; Comorbidity; Depressive Disorder; Diagnosis, Differential; Female; Humans; Male; Severity of Illness Index; Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic; Substance-Related Disorders
Disciplines
Mental and Social Health | Mental Disorders | Psychiatric and Mental Health | Psychiatry | Psychiatry and Psychology
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Because of continuing controversy over distinguishing juvenile bipolar disorder (JBD) from disruptive behavior disorders (DBDs) in the clinical setting, we investigated whether referred children with a DBD and a negative mood component could be differentiated from those diagnosed with JBD. The distinction is important because treatments differ.
METHODS: In this single-site sample, 96 children with non-attention-deficit/hyperactivity DBD and depression were compared with 27 JBD children and 187 psychiatric comparison children on measures assessing behavior, functional impairment, symptom severity, psychopathology, and comorbid psychiatric diagnosis.
RESULTS: Few differences were found between children with DBD and depression and those with JBD on measures of conduct problems, oppositionality, aggression, hostility, and psychopathology. More functional impairment was found in the JBD group who also had higher rates of comorbid posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), substance use disorders, and suicidality than the other groups.
CONCLUSIONS: These results do not support the specificity of aggression as a defining criterion for JBD and clinicians assessing such patients also should consider complex DBDs with an associated depressive component in the differential diagnosis. Children with JBD must be specifically assessed for comorbid developmental trauma, substance abuse, and suicidality. The association between JBD and PTSD needs further investigation in clinical research.
Source
Ann Clin Psychiatry. 2012 Nov;24(4):261-70.
Journal/Book/Conference Title
Annals of clinical psychiatry : official journal of the American Academy of Clinical Psychiatrists
Related Resources
PubMed ID
23145382
Repository Citation
Connor, Daniel F. and Doerfler, Leonard A., "Characteristics of children with juvenile bipolar disorder or disruptive behavior disorders and negative mood: can they be distinguished in the clinical setting?" (2012). Systems and Psychosocial Advances Research Center Publications and Presentations. 606.
https://escholarship.umassmed.edu/psych_cmhsr/606
