Facial emotion recognition in euthymic patients with bipolar disorder and their unaffected first-degree relatives.

BACKGROUND: Facial emotion recognition (FER) is an important task associated with social cognition because facial expression is a significant source of non-verbal information that guides interpersonal relationships. Increasing evidence suggests that bipolar disorder (BD) patients present deficits in FER and these deficits may be present in individuals at high genetic risk for BD. The aim of this study was to evaluate the occurrence of FER deficits in euthymic BD patients, their first-degree relatives, and healthy controls (HC) and to consider if these deficits might be regarded as an endophenotype candidate for BD. METHODS: We studied 23 patients with DSM-IV BD type I, 22 first-degree relatives of these patients, and 27 HC. We used the Penn Emotion Recognition Tests to evaluate tasks of FER, emotion discrimination, and emotional acuity. Patients were recruited from outpatient facilities at the Institute of Psychiatry of the University of Sao Paulo Medical School, or from the community through media advertisements, had to be euthymic, with age above 18years old and a diagnosis of DSM-IV BD type I. RESULTS: Euthymic BD patients presented significantly fewer correct responses for fear, and significantly increased time to response to recognize happy faces when compared with HC, but not when compared with first-degree relatives. First-degree relatives did not significantly differ from HC on any of the emotion recognition tasks. CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that deficits in FER are present in euthymic patients, but not in subjects at high genetic risk for BD. Thus, we have not found evidence to consider FER as an endophenotype candidate for BD.

Association between history of suicide attempts and family functioning in bipolar disorder.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the association between history of suicide attempts (SA) and family functioning in bipolar disorder (BD) patients. METHODS: Thirty-one BD type I patients with lifetime history of SA, 31 BD type I with no lifetime history of SA, participating in the Outpatient Clinic of the Bipolar Disorder Program at the Institute of Psychiatry of the University of São Paulo Medical School were recruited for this study. We used the Family Assessment Device (FAD) to evaluate family functioning. We compared these two groups on demographic and clinical variables to identify which variables were associated with family functioning impairment. Fifty-one relatives of the same patients were also asked to complete a FAD. RESULTS: BD patients with SA presented more psychiatric hospitalizations, higher frequency of psychotic symptoms, and higher scores on depressive, manic, and suicidal ideation than BD patients without SA. BD patients with SA presented significantly higher scores in several subscales of the FAD, including Problem Solving (p=0.042), Communication (p=0.009), Roles (p=0.006), and General Functioning (p=0.025), when compared with BD patients without SA. Relatives of BD patients with SA presented significantly higher scores in Communication, Roles, Affective Responsiveness, and General Functioning than relatives of BD patients without SA. LIMITATIONS: Cross-sectional study and long time elapsed since last SA. CONCLUSION: History of SA in BD is associated with worse family functioning in several domains of FAD, including Problem Solving, Communication, Roles, and General Functioning. As suicide attempts are routinely assessed in clinical practice, these findings may help to identify patients with poorer family functioning and may suggest a role for environmental risk factors in suicidal behavior among BD patients.

Serum BDNF levels in unaffected first-degree relatives of patients with bipolar disorder.

OBJECTIVE: Unaffected relatives of bipolar disorder (BD) patients have been investigated for the identification of endophenotypes in an attempt to further elucidate the pathophysiology of the disease. Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) is considered to be implicated in the pathophysiology of BD, but its role as an endophenotype has been poorly studied. We investigated abnormal serum BDNF levels in BD patients, in their unaffected relatives, and in healthy controls. METHODS: BDNF levels were obtained from 25 DSM-IV bipolar I disorder patients, 23 unaffected relatives, and 27 healthy controls. All BD patients were in remission. The unaffected subjects were first-degree relatives of the proband who had no lifetime DSM-IV diagnosis of axis I disorder. BDNF serum levels were determined by sandwich ELISA using monoclonal BDNF-specific antibodies. RESULTS: There were no statistical differences in BDNF levels among BD patients, relatives, and healthy controls. CONCLUSION: Serum BDNF levels may not indicate high genetic risk for BD, possibly acting as state markers rather than trait markers of the disease.

Gray matter volumes in patients with bipolar disorder and their first-degree relatives.

Bipolar disorder (BD) is highly heritable. First-degree relatives of BD patient have an increased risk to develop the disease. We investigated abnormalities in gray matter (GM) volumes in healthy first-degree relatives of BD patients to identify possible brain structural endophenotypes for the disorder. 3D T1-weighted magnetic resonance images were obtained from 25 DSM-IV BD type I patients, 23 unaffected relatives, and 27 healthy controls (HC). A voxel-based morphometry protocol was used to compare differences in GM volumes between groups. BD patients presented reduced GM volumes bilaterally in the thalamus compared with HC. Relatives presented no global or regional GM differences compared with HC. Our negative results do not support the role of GM volume abnormalities as endophenotypes for BD. Thalamic volume abnormalities may be associated the pathophysiology of the disease.

Association between family history of mood disorders and clinical characteristics of bipolar disorder: results from the Brazilian bipolar research network.

OBJECTIVES: To compare clinical characteristics of bipolar disorder (BD) in patients with and without a family history of mood disorders (FHMD) in a large sample from the Brazilian Research Network of Bipolar Disorders. METHODS: Four-hundred eighty-eight DSM-IV BD patients participating in the Brazilian Research Network of Bipolar Disorders were included. Participants were divided between those with FHMD (n=230) and without FHMD (n=258). We compared these two groups on demographic and clinical variables and performed a logistic regression to identify which variables were most strongly associated with positive family history of mood disorders. RESULTS: BD patients with FHMD presented with significantly higher lifetime prevalence of any anxiety disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, social phobia, substance abuse, and were more likely to present history of suicide attempts, family history of suicide attempts and suicide, and more psychiatric hospitalizations than BD patients without FHMD. Logistic regression showed that the variables most strongly associated with a positive FHMD were any comorbid anxiety disorder, comorbid substance abuse, and family history of suicide. LIMITATIONS: Cross-sectional study and verification of FHMD by indirect information. CONCLUSION: BD patients with FHMD differ from BD patients without FHMD in rates of comorbid anxiety disorder and substance abuse, number of hospitalizations and suicide attempts. As FHMD is routinely assessed in clinical practice, these findings may help to identify patients at risk for particular manifestations of BD and may point to a common, genetically determined neurobiological substrate that increases the risk of conditions such as comorbidities and suicidality in BD patients.

Serum BDNF levels in unaffected first-degree relatives of patients with bipolar disorder

Objective: Unaffected relatives of bipolar disorder (BD) patients have been investigated for the identification of endophenotypes in an attempt to further elucidate the pathophysiology of the disease. Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) is considered to be implicated in the pathophysiology of BD, but its role as an endophenotype has been poorly studied. We investigated abnormal serum BDNF levels in BD patients, in their unaffected relatives, and in healthy controls. Methods: BDNF levels were obtained from 25 DSM-IV bipolar I disorder patients, 23 unaffected relatives, and 27 healthy controls. All BD patients were in remission. The unaffected subjects were first-degree relatives of the proband who had no lifetime DSM-IV diagnosis of axis I disorder. BDNF serum levels were determined by sandwich ELISA using monoclonal BDNF-specific antibodies. Results: There were no statistical differences in BDNF levels among BD patients, relatives, and healthy controls. Conclusion: Serum BDNF levels may not indicate high genetic risk for BD, possibly acting as state markers rather than trait markers of the disease.

Funcionamento familiar e tentativa de suicídio em pacientes com transtorno afetivo bipolar / Family functioning and suicide attempts in bipolar disorder patients

A influência do transtorno afetivo bipolar (TB) no comportamento do indivíduo pode interferir significativamente no funcionamento familiar. Em uma perspectiva sistêmica, o funcionamento familiar diz respeito à forma como a família proporciona o ambiente adequado para o desenvolvimento e a sobrevivência dos membros da família nos níveis biológico, psicológico e social. Estudos que avaliaram o funcionamento familiar em famílias de pacientes com TB utilizando o Inventário de Avaliação Familiar (IAF) sugerem que o funcionamento familiar é globalmente pior quando comparado a famílias de indivíduos saudáveis. Entre todos os transtornos psiquiátricos, o TB caracteriza-se por uma das mais altas taxas de tentativas de suicídio e mortalidade por suicídio. Estudos recentes em transtorno depressivo maior sugerem que existe uma associação entre pior funcionamento familiar e comportamento suicida. No entanto, a associação entre funcionamento familiar e tentativa de suicídio em pacientes com TB tem sido pouco estudada. Hipótese: Famílias de pacientes portadores de TB que tenham apresentado pelo menos uma tentativa de suicídio na vida apresentam um pior funcionamento familiar quando comparadas a famílias de pacientes portadores de TB que nunca tentaram suicídio. Métodos: Sessenta e dois pacientes com TB (trinta e um com histórico de pelo menos uma tentativa de suicídio na vida, trinta e um sem histórico de tentativas de suicídio na vida) e sessenta familiares de pacientes com TB (vinte e nove familiares de pacientes com TB com história de pelo menos uma tentativa de suicídio na vida e trinta e um familiares de pacientes com TB sem histórico de tentativas de suicídio na vida) foram avaliados através do IAF. Escores médios de funcionamento familiar foram comparados entre os grupos, bem como correlações entre escores da IAF e sintomas de humor ou de ideação suicida. Resultados: Pacientes com TB e história de tentativa de suicídio apresentaram um número significativamente maior...

The influence of bipolar disorder (BD) on the patient's behavior might interfere significantly with family functioning. From a systemic perspective, family functioning is about the way that family provides the appropriate environment for biologic, psychological and social development and survival for each family member. Studies evaluating family functioning in BD using the Family Assessment Device (FAD) suggest that family functioning is worse in families of BD patients when compared with control families. Considering all psychiatric disorders, BD is characterized by the highest rates of suicide attempts and mortality by suicide. Recent studies in major depression disorder suggest that there is an association between worse family functioning and suicidal behavior. The association between family functioning and suicide attempts in BD patients has been poorly investigated. Hypothesis: Families of BD patients with history of suicide attempts will present worse family functioning when compared with families of BD patients without suicide attempts. Methods: Sixty two BD patients (thirty-one BD I patients with lifetime history of suicide attempts and thirty-one BD I patients with no lifetime history of SA) and 61 first degree relatives (father, mother, brother, sister, daughter, son, or spouse) (twenty-nine relatives of BD I patients with lifetime history of suicide attempts and thirty-one relatives of BD I patients with no lifetime history of SA) were assessed using the Family Assessment Device (FAD). Family functioning scores were compared between both groups as correlation between FAD scores and mood symptoms and suicide ideation. Results: BD patients with history of suicide attempts presented significantly more psychiatric hospitalization (p=0,029), higher frequency of psychotic symptoms (p=0,037), and higher scores on depressive (p=0,026), manic (p=0,005), and suicidal ideation scores (p=0,041) than BD patients without suicide attempts. BD patients with...