Predictors of good outcome in patients with refractory bipolar disorder after a drug or a drug and cognitive-behavioral treatment.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of the present research study was to analyze the variables involved in the favorable prognosis of patients with refractory bipolar disorder after a drug or a drug and cognitive-behavioral treatment. METHODS: A sample of 40 patients was divided into 2 groups: (1) combined drug plus psychoeducational and cognitive-behavioral treatment or (2) drug treatment only (control group). We used a multigroup design with repeated measures at different times (baseline, posttreatment, 6-month follow-up, and 12-month follow-up) to evaluate the following variables: age, sex, number of hospitalizations, type of treatment, mania (Young Mania Rating Scale, or YMRS) and depression (Beck Depression Index, or BDI) symptoms, subsyndromal symptoms (BDI >7; YMRS >6), global suffering index, general index of social ability, self-esteem (Rosenberg scale), inadaptation (inadaptation Scale), anxiety (State-Trait Anxiety Inventory), quality of life (Global Activity Functioning), and health (European Quality of Life Scale). We considered favorable prognosis for subjects without persistent affective symptoms (BDI <7; YMRS <6) and/or without relevant difficulties in adaptation (Inadaptation Scale <14) in a 12-month follow-up. RESULTS: A binary logistic regression showed that the type of treatment (combined therapy corresponded to better progression), the number of prior hospitalizations (fewer hospitalizations corresponded to better progression), and self-esteem (higher self-esteem corresponded to better prognosis) were statistically significant. CONCLUSIONS: The type of treatment, the number of prior hospitalizations, and the level of self-esteem were the most influencing factors for a favorable progression of refractory bipolar disorder. Differently from other studies, no significant influences of age, sex, subsyndromal symptoms, anxiety, and depression symptoms on the prognosis of refractory bipolar disorder were observed in our study.

Long-term efficacy of a psychological intervention program for patients with refractory bipolar disorder: a pilot study.

The aim of this research was to test the long-term efficacy of combined standard treatment (pharmacotherapy and adjunctive psychosocial treatment based on a cognitive-behavioral model) compared with standard drug treatment for patients with recurrent bipolar disorder. Twenty patients selected according to DSM-IV-TR criteria were randomized to 1) combined treatment or 2) control treatment. A multigroup experimental design with repeated assessment measures (pre-treatment, post-treatment, 6-month follow-up, and 12-month follow-up) was used. Results of the repeated measurement analysis showed a significant increment in scores of Global Activity Functioning within the combined treatment group during the follow-up, which was not observed in the control treatment group. Therefore, the effectiveness of psychotherapy tends to increase with time, and this improvement is not significant until 12 months of follow-up.