Neuropsychological deficits in bipolar disorder are likely to be trait-related

Neuropsychological impairments in young people who had only experienced a few episodes of bipolar disorder suggests that the deficits are trait abnormalities rather than the effect of chronic illness, multiple episodes or residual mood symptoms, a recent study has shown.Impairment of sustained attention has been found to be a common deficit observed in the euthymic phase of bipolar affective disorder; however, it is unclear if this is due to the effects of chronic illness and residual depressive symptoms. Kolur et al. sought to assess sustained attention and executive functioning in young euthymic people with few episodes and shorter duration of illness to determine if deficits are the result of chronicity of illness and multiple affective episodes.Thirty people aged less than 30 years with bipolar 1 disorder for less than 5 years, who had experienced no more than two affective episodes, and euthymic state were included in the study. Thirty healthy matched controls were also included. All participants were assessed for sustained attention and executive function.Multivariate logistic regression analysis demonstrated that deficits in executive functioning differentiated between people with bipolar disorder from the controls. Participants with bipolar disorder showed impairment of sustained attention and executive functioning, with further subgroup analysis revealing no significant difference based on number of episodes, or gender, and intensity of current treatment. Residual depressive symptoms were not correlated with neuropsychological performance.Kolur et al. pointed out that most previous studies included people who were much older than their sample and who experienced multiple relapses with long-term exposure to psychotropic medication, and stated: "Our findings suggest that the deficits are possibly trait-related, considering that they were detected in young euthymic individuals with few episodes of the disorder.""The deficits in the long run can cause considerable impairment in psychosocial and occupational functioning; therefore, greater emphasis should be placed on routine assessment of cognitive function in patients with bipolar disorder", they explained.The authors concluded that deficits in attention and executive functioning are present in young people who had only experienced only a few episodes of bipolar disorder, suggesting that the deficits may be trait abnormalities.Reference...