Obesity in patients with major depression is related to bipolarity and mixed features: Evidence from the BRIDGE-II-Mix study

Bipolar Disorders — Petri E, et al. | July 31, 2017

The link between obesity and the presence of mixed features and bipolarity was gauged during this trial. It was determined that the presence of obesity in patients with major depressive episode (MDE) appeared to be correlated with higher rates of bipolar spectrum disorders. Obesity in patients with an MDE possibly served as a marker of bipolarity.

Methods

• The eligible candidates included 2811 MDE subjects.
• The design of this research was a multicenter cross-sectional study.
• The body mass index (BMI) was estimated in 2744 patients.
• Psychiatric symptoms, and sociodemographic and clinical variables were collected, comparing the characteristics of MDE patients with (MDE-OB) and without (MDE-NOB) obesity.

• Results

• Obesity (BMI ≥30) was registered in 493 patients (18%).
• In the MDE-OB group, 90 patients (20%) fulfilled the DSM-IV-TR criteria for bipolar disease (BD), 225 patients (50%) fulfilled the bipolarity specifier criteria, 59 patients (13%) fulfilled DSM-5 criteria for MDEs with mixed features, and 226 patients (50%) fulfilled Research-Based Diagnostic Criteria for an MDE.
• It was reported that older age, history of (hypo)manic switches during antidepressant treatment, the occurrence of three or more MDEs, atypical depressive features, antipsychotic treatment, female gender, depressive mixed state according to DSM-5 criteria, comorbid eating disorders, and anxiety disorders exhibited marked relation with the MDE-OB group.
• Among (hypo)manic symptoms during the current MDE, psychomotor agitation, distractibility, increased energy, and risky behaviors were determined as the variables that were often linked with MDE-OB group.

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No apparent association between bipolar disorder and cancer in a large epidemiological study of outpatients in a managed care population

International Clinical Psychopharmacology — | February 01, 2018

Kahan NR, et al. – This study was designed to investigate the association between bipolar disorder (BD) and cancer risk through linkage analysis of a national HMO database and a national cancer registry. Findings do not support previously reported associations between BD and elevated cancer risk.

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