Citation

Tondo L, Lepri B, Cruz N, Baldessarini RJ. Acta Psychiatr. Scand. 2010; 121(6): 446-452.

Affiliation

Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School and International Consortium for Psychotic and Mood Disorders Research, McLean Division of Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2010, John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1111/j.1600-0447.2009.01523.x

PMID

20040069

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: To test if onset age in major affective illnesses is younger in bipolar disorder (BPD) than unipolar-major depressive disorder (UP-MDD), and is a useful measure. METHOD: We evaluated onset-age for DSM-IV-TR major illnesses in 3014 adults (18.5% BP-I, 12.5% BP-II, 69.0% UP-MDD; 64% women) at a mood-disorders center. RESULTS: Median and interquartile range (IQR) onset-age ranked: BP-I = 24 (19-32) < BP-II = 29 (20-40) < UP-MDD = 32 (23-47) years (P < 0.0001), and has remained stable since the 1970s. In BP-I patients, onset was latest for hypomania, and depression presented earlier than in BP-II or UP-MDD cases. Factors associated with younger onset included: i) being unmarried, ii) more education, iii) BPD-diagnosis, iv) family-history, v) being employed, vi) ever-suicidal, vii) substance-abuse and viii) ever-hospitalized. Onset-age distinguished BP-I from UP-MDD depressive onsets with weak sensitivity and specificity. CONCLUSION: Onset age was younger among BPD than MDD patients, and very early onset may distinguish BPD vs. UP-MDD with depressive-onset.

Language: en