Show Bipolar disorder diagnoses boom among young people Denise Gellene Los Angeles Times The diagnosis of bipolar disorder in children and adolescents has risen since 1994 according to a new study released Monday But researchers partly attributed the dramatic rise to doctors the serious psychiatric disorder The report in the journal Archives of of General Psychiatry said bipolar disorder was found in 1003 of every office visits from children and adolescents compared with 25 of office visits in 1994 The diagnosis of bipolar disorder among adults increased twofold during the same period researchers said The study didn't investigate the reasons for forthe forthe forthe the explosion in bipolar cases among children and adolescents which began after the 1998 publication of The Bipolar Child which made the controversial assertion that third one-third to one-half one of children with depression had bipolar disorder Dr Mark a psychiatrist at Columbia University's College of Physicians and Surgeons and senior author of the latest study said part of the increase was attributable to an of bipolar disorder in the past But said another reason was the mislabeling of children and adolescents with aggressive or irritable behaviors as bipolar an illness that is treated with powerful psychotropic medications Dr Thomas R. R Insel director of the National Institute of Mental Health which funded the study called the increase in bipolar diagnoses worrisome The way the label is being used is probably a little exuberant not fitting with the strict definition of the illness Insel said The disorder is probably not as common as the very high rates were we're seeing Bipolar disorder is marked by severe mood swings between depression and mania which is characterized by an excess of energy and restlessness For most patients depressive episodes are arc three times more common and longer-lasting longer than those of mania Symptoms of the disorder can interfere with daily activities and severe cases carry a risk of suicide Until recently the illness which appears to torun torun torun run in families was seldom diagnosed in children It was believed to begin in late adolescence or early adulthood About 2 percent of American adults are believed to to have bipolar disorder although not all of them have been diagnosed with the illness In the latest study researchers analyzed data from an annual national survey that collects information from doctors about the nature of patient visits Researchers found striking differences between adults and the young Among children and a adolescents boys were more likely to be diagnosed with ith bipolar disorder Among adults the illness is ismore ismore ismore more common in women said the gender difference between the groups suggested that some boys with behavior problems or conduct disorders were being misdiagnosed as bipolar Irritability is a characteristic of bipolar disorder he said but it also is a normal part of adolescence Young people were 10 times more likely to also receive a diagnosis of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder than bipolar adults according to the report said it was likely that some children with received the additional diagnosis of bipolar disorder because the symptoms of the two illnesses overlapped For example he said some children and adolescents have havea volatile aggressive sub subtype e that thatis thatis thatis is easily confused with bipolar disorder Dr A. A Carlson a psychiatrist at Stony Brook University in New York said 1 I of every 5 children referred to her with a diagnosis 0 fbi polar disorder actually have it The rest have autism depression anxiety or another psychological disorder All these conditions involve different treatments either with drugs or behavioral therapy or both Carlson who has studied the increase in bipolar diagnoses said some parents seemed to prefer a diagnosis of the disorder because the illness which is thought to be largely genetic absolves them of blame They dont don't have to todeal todeal todeal deal with their chaos their psychiatric disorder their marital troubles or abuse She said that in some cases providers diagnose PI psychological problems problem 1 in children as bipolar disorder to obtain insurance reimbursement i for hospitalizations ons a f practice called I Insel said his institute was conducting research that might lead to more more I I accurate diagnoses of I bipolar disorder in young young- people The agency said I recent imaging studies had detected differences I between the brains of normal children and those with bipolar disorder A II large study looking for forthe forthe the genes responsible for forthe forthe the disorder is nearing h completion and may yield i isome some additional clues Insel i said In addition the agency t is tracking children with bipolar disorder to see how I f I their symptoms change changeover over time Only a small 1 fraction of children referred r for the study actually had bipolar disorder Ins Insel 1 said another indication that the label is misused I iI i iI I I |