Bipolar Disorder News and Research

Latest Bipolar Disorder News and Research

Pregnant women with bipolar disorder at greater risk of delivering premature babies

Women who have been previously hospitalized for bipolar disorder are nearly twice as likely to have premature babies compared to women without a history of mental illness, according to a new study by researchers at Women's College Hospital and the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences.

4 Nov 2014

Transition Therapeutics presents Phase 2 study of ELND005 drug for bipolar disorder

Transition Therapeutics Inc. ("Transition" or the "Company") today announced findings from a Phase 2 study of neuropsychiatric drug candidate, ELND005, as an adjunctive maintenance treatment for bipolar disorder type I patients (BPD).

4 Nov 2014

Family therapy useful in bipolar disorder

Psychoeducational family intervention improves social functioning in patients with bipolar I disorder and reduces burden among close relatives, Italian study data show.

31 Oct 2014

Psychotherapies offer options for treating bipolar disorder

Interpersonal and social rhythm therapy and specialist supportive care appear to be equally effective in reducing the symptoms of bipolar disorder in adolescents and young adults with the condition, study findings indicate.

30 Oct 2014

ISBD Task Force examines suicide predictors

The International Society for Bipolar Disorders Task Force on Suicide has published a meta-analysis of predictors of suicide attempts and deaths.

30 Oct 2014

Nano-sized discovery helps explain bipolar disorder

A nano-sized discovery by Northwestern Medicine® scientists helps explain how bipolar disorder affects the brain and could one day lead to new drug therapies to treat the mental illness.

24 Oct 2014

$Insulin resistance linked to treatment-refractory bipolar disorder$

Insulin resistance linked to treatment-refractory bipolar disorder

Patients with bipolar disorder who are insulin resistant are likely to also be refractory to mood-stabilising treatment, report researchers.

22 Oct 2014

Verbal abuse worsens bipolar disease outcome

Experiencing verbal abuse in childhood has a lasting negative effect on the course of bipolar disorder, researchers have found.

22 Oct 2014

Aspirin can improve efficacy of schizophrenia treatments

A new study shows that some anti-inflammatory medicines, such as aspirin, estrogen, and Fluimucil, can improve the efficacy of existing schizophrenia treatments. This work is being presented at the European College of Neuropsychopharmacology conference in Berlin.

20 Oct 2014

People with severe mental illness use YouTube to provide, receive peer support

People with severe mental illness such as schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder or bipolar disorder use a popular social media website like YouTube to provide and receive naturally occurring peer support, Dartmouth researchers report in the journal PLOS ONE.

20 Oct 2014

Genome Canada awards $6M grant to CAMH and Assurex Health

Assurex Health and Canada's Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) today announced they have received a $6 million grant from Genome Canada, an agency of the Canadian government, to study the benefits of genetic testing to guide medication decisions for patients with depression or schizophrenia.

17 Oct 2014

ADHD increases major depression to bipolar disorder conversion

Young people with major depression have an increased risk of conversion to bipolar disorder if they have comorbid attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder, suggest findings from a longitudinal follow-up study.

15 Oct 2014

UMMS, UMMSM researchers identify key genetic pathway underlying bipolar disorder

A team of scientists led by researchers at the University of Massachusetts Medical School and the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine have identified what is likely a key genetic pathway underlying bipolar (manic depressive) disorder, a breakthrough that could lead to better drugs for treating bipolar affective disorder, as well as depression and other related mood disorders.

14 Oct 2014

Pointers for boosting prophylactic bipolar treatment reported

Patients with newly diagnosed bipolar disorder who have not previously used psychiatric drugs or have short hospital admissions should be targeted for prophylactic treatment, say researchers.

8 Oct 2014

State highlights: States and drug prices; Ariz. limiting Sovaldi for patients; L.A. boosts uninsured care by $61 million

Because of its high cost, some state Medicaid programs and prison systems are refusing to provide Sovaldi to any but the sickest patients. Most recently, Oregon last month threatened to limit access to the drug unless it can get Sovaldi at a deeply discounted price. But Sovaldi is only the beginning. Expensive new treatments for certain cancers, rheumatoid arthritis and other conditions also have rattled Medicaid officials, patients and health care providers. What can states do to hold down drug costs? Drug pricing is a complicated and opaque process.

8 Oct 2014

Schizophrenia and bipolar disorder share common pathophysiological features

Schizophrenia and bipolar disorder both appear to be associated with dendritic spine loss in the brain, suggesting the two distinct disorders may share common pathophysiological features, write author Glenn T. Konopaske, M.D., and colleagues at McLean Hospital, Belmont, Mass., and Harvard Medical School, Boston.

3 Oct 2014

Dendritic spine density also reduced in bipolar disorder

Patients with bipolar disorder have significant dendritic spine loss in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, postmortem findings show.

2 Oct 2014

Clinical practice study supports ISBD recommendations

Findings in patients with bipolar disorder given short-term antidepressant treatment support the recent International Society for Bipolar Disorder’s task force recommendations.

2 Oct 2014

Brain & Behavior Research Foundation to honor 8 scientists for achievements in psychiatric research

The Brain & Behavior Research Foundation will honor eight scientists with its 2014 Outstanding Achievement Prizes for work delving into psychiatric disorders that affect one in four people. The awards, which celebrate the transformative power of neuroscience and psychiatric research to improve the lives of people with mental illness, will be presented at the Foundation's National Awards Dinner at the Pierre Hotel.

30 Sep 2014

Patrick F. Sullivan honored with 2014 Lieber Prize for making contributions to schizophrenia research

Patrick F. Sullivan, MD, FRANZCP, M. Hayworth & Family Distinguished Professor of Psychiatry and Professor of Genetics and Psychiatry at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine, is one of two researchers awarded the 2014 Lieber Prize for Outstanding Achievement in Schizophrenia Research.

30 Sep 2014