To print: Select File and then Print from your browser's menu --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Title: DG DISPATCH - AACAP: Bipolarity In Children And Adolescents Remains Largely Difficult To Treat URL: http://www.pslgroup.com/dg/13DF7E.htm Doctor's Guide October 25, 1999
By Lara Pullen Special to DG News
CHICAGO, IL -- October 25, 1999 -- Manic depression has only recently been recognized as a diagnosis in children and adolescents. In fact, a recent study suggests that only 50 percent of children suffering from biposal disorder are actually receiving appropriate treatment, suggesting that pediatricians do not easily recognize the symptoms of bipolarity as they are manifested in children.
Dr. Barbara Geller, of the Washington University School of Medicine, addressed these issues of pre-pubertal and early-adolescent bipolarity (PEA-BP) at the 46th annual meeting of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, in Chicago, IL. She presented data from the ongoing National Institute of Mental Health study "Phenomenology and Course of Pediatric Bipolar Disorders."
The 93 children with PEA-BP enrolled in the study were on 25 different medications, including lithium, chlorpromazine and haloperidol. The study was unable to identify any statistical improvement for any of these 25 treatments or treatment combinations.
A preliminary look at the results two years after the start of the study shows that 70 percent of the patients had a bipolar episode during the past six-month timeframe, suggesting that PEA-BP is a chronic and recurrent disease, Dr. Geller said.
According to Dr. Geller, examples of manifestations of PEA-BP include giggling in class (elation), calling the principal to provide feedback on how a class is taught (grandiosity), and waking up in the middle of the night ready to dance (decreased need for sleep).
In the virtual absence of controlled, systematic studies of treatments for PEA-BP, physicians must rely on extrapolations from adult studies and their colleagues' clinical experience in determining an appropriate approach to treatment. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Copyright © 1999 P\S\L Consulting Group Inc. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of P\S\L content is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of P\S\L. P\S\L shall not be liable for any errors, omissions or delays in this content or any other content on its sites, newsletters or other publications, nor for any decisions or actions taken in reliance on such content. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This news story was printed from *Doctor's Guide to the Internet* located at http://www.docguide.com --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Return to News Story Page This site is maintained by webmaster@pslgroup.com Please contact us with any comments, problems or bugs. All contents Copyright (c) 1998 P\S\L Consulting Group Inc. All rights reserved.