Sir: Bipolar II disorder is a valid and reliable diagnosis and its prevalence in society is higher than was once assumed. Considering the fact that the main clinical presentation of bipolar II disorder is composed of depressive symptoms and the fact that the retrospective diagnosis of episodes of hypomania is often difficult, there has been an increased concern about the underdiagnosis of bipol...

Sir: Bipolar II disorder is a valid and reliable diagnosis and its prevalence in society is higher than was once assumed. Considering the fact that the main clinical presentation of bipolar II disorder is composed of depressive symptoms and the fact that the retrospective diagnosis of episodes of hypomania is often difficult, there has been an increased concern about the underdiagnosis of bipol...

BACKGROUND Across all ages and cultures, mankind has always used substances in order to induce pleasurable sensations or desirable psychophysical states. These substances, notably caffeine, tobacco, alcohol and chocolate, can be labeled 'social drugs'. METHODS We analyzed the social drug habits of 562 patients suffering from mood disorders, according to DSM-IV-R criteria (major depressive epi...

Numerous hypotheses have been put forth over the years to explain the development of bipolar disorder. Of these, circadian rhythm hypotheses have gained much importance of late. While the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis hyperactivation hypothesis and the monoamine hypothesis somewhat explain the pathogenic mechanism of depression, they do not provide an explanation for the development...

BACKGROUND A number of studies have documented high levels of hypomanic symptoms in those diagnosed with depression, suggesting a potential misdiagnosis of bipolar disorder as unipolar depression. Research suggests that undergraduate students have high levels of depression, but whether such misdiagnosis occurs in this population has not been examined. The aim of this study was therefore to exam...

OBJECTIVE To address whether switch of depression into hypomania or mania or cycle acceleration in patients with bipolar disorder is caused by antidepressants or whether this phenomenon is attributable to the natural history of bipolar disorder itself. METHOD A critical review of the literature, pointing at sources of bias that have been previously overlooked. For examining the causation in q...

Bipolar disorder (BD) is one of the most difficult to diagnose among all psychiatric disorders. BD is often misdiagnosed as recurrent depressive disorder, schizophrenia, anxiety or personality disorders. In 40% of patients BD is not detected at the first examination and in 2/3 of cases the proper diagnosis is made after about 10 years. The consequence of this condition is inadequate treatment l...

BACKGROUND The prevalence, characteristics and implications of excessive arousal-activation in children and adolescents treated with antidepressants for specific illnesses have not been systematically examined. METHODS We compared reports of antidepressant trials (n = 6,767 subjects) in juvenile depressive (n = 17) and anxiety disorders (n = 25) for consensus-based indications of psychopathol...

BACKGROUND To identify mental disorders and their prevalence in patients with retinitis pigmentosa (RP). METHODS This descriptive study was carried out between January 2009 and January 2010 on 417 patients with RP, who were members of Iran RP Center. The necessary data were collected using questionnaires consisting two parts: The background characteristics and questions assessing the mental h...