The Staging of Major Mood Disorders: Clinical and Neurobiological Correlates

The Discovery of Clinically Applicable Biomarkers for Bipolar Disorder: A Review of Candidate and Proteomic Approaches

Bipolar disorder (BD) is a severe psychiatric condition which affects innumerable people across the globe. The etiopathogenesis of BD is multi-faceted with genetic, environmental and psychosocial factors playing a role. Hitherto, the diagnosis and management of BD are purely on empirical grounds as we lack confirmed biomarkers for this condition. In this regard, hypothesis-driven investigations have been unable to identify clinically applicable biomarkers, steering the field towards newer technologies. Innovative, state-of-the-art techniques like multiplex immunoassays and mass spectrometry can potentially investigate the entire proteome. By detecting up or down regulated proteins, novel biomarkers are identified and new postulates about the etiopathogenesis of BD are specified. Hence, biological pathways are uncovered which are involved in the initiation and advancement of the disease and new therapeutic targets are identified. In this manuscript, the extant literature is thoroughly reviewed and the latest findings on candidate BD biomarkers are provided, followed by an overview of the proteomic approaches. It was found that due to the heterogeneous nature of BD no single biomarker is feasible, instead a panel of tests is more likely to be useful. With the application of latest technologies, it is expected that validated biomarkers will be discovered which will be useful as diagnostic tools and help in the delivery of individually tailored therapies to the patients.

The Effect of Cognitive Training in a Day Care Center in Patients with Early Alzheimer's Disease Dementia: A Retrospective Study

OBJECTIVE

This study aimed to evaluate the effect of cognitive training programs on the progression of dementia in patients with early stage Alzheimer's disease dementia (ADD) at the day care center.

METHODS

From January 2015 to December 2018, a total of 119 patients with early ADD were evaluated. All subjects were classified into two groups according to participate in cognitive training program in addition to usual standard clinical care. Changes in scores for minimental status examination-dementia screening (MMSE-DS) and clinical dementia rating-sum of boxes (CDR-SOB) during the 12 months were compared between two groups. Multivariable logistic regression analyses were performed.

RESULTS

As compared to case-subjects (n=43), the MMSE-DS and CDR-SOB scores were significantly worse at 12 months in the control-subjects (n=76). A statistically significant difference between the two groups was observed due to changes in MMSE-DS (p=0.012) and CDR-SOB (p<0.001) scores. Multivariable logistic regression analysis showed that the cognitive training program (odds ratio and 95% confidence interval: 0.225, 0.070-0.725) was independently associated with less progression of ADD.

CONCLUSION

The cognitive training program was associated with benefits in maintaining cognitive function for patients with earlystage ADD that were receiving medical treatment.

Group Cognitive Behavioral Analysis System of Psychotherapy (CBASP): A Pilot Study for Bipolar Depression

OBJECTIVES

Cognitive Behavioral Analysis System of Psychotherapy (CBASP) is an individually administered treatment model designed specifically for Persistent Depression however bipolar patients have traditionally been excluded from CBASP studies. There is a perception that bipolar depression will be harder to treat and requires a unique psychological approach. This pilot study reports on the feasibility of administering the same 20-week manualized group CBASP therapy with bipolar patients currently in a depressive episode.

METHODS

This non-randomized, single-arm prospective pilot study, reports on an a posteriori exploration of benefits to bipolar depressed patients (n=26) of the same 20-week group CBASP intervention administered to unipolar depressed patients (n=81). The clinical trial for the initial phase examining benefits of the manualized 20-week group CBASP intervention with unipolar patients was registered with the ISRCTN registry, study ID: ISRCTN95149444. Results reported here include mixed ANOVA analyses, across group treatment models and diagnostic categories. Changes over time in self-reported depressive symptoms (Inventory of Depressive Symptoms -IDS-SR), self-reported social functioning, interpersonal problems and interpersonal dispositions are documented for all patients. An exploratory longitudinal latent class analysis was used to examine patients' trajectories of improvement in depressive symptoms. Finally, the best predictors of change in reported depressive symptoms were explored with a logistic regression for all patients.

RESULTS

Improvements in depressive symptoms and in social functioning over time were significant for all patients with bipolar patients trending towards a greater improvement in depressive symptoms after controlling for baseline differences. An exploratory Latent Class Analysis identified two different treatment trajectories for the entire sample: 1) moderate to severely depressed patients who improved significantly (49%) and 2) severely depressed patients who did not improve (51%). The best predictors of non-response to group therapy include high baseline problems in social functioning and low rates of self-reported Perceived Improvements in overall health.

CONCLUSION

Bipolar patients in a depressive episode appear to benefit from the same 20-week group CBASP model designed originally for the treatment of Persistent Depressive Disorder. Bipolar patients seem more easily mobilized both during and outside of group therapy sessions and report more interpersonal confidence and more agency than unipolar depressed patients.

Clinical Characteristics and Psychotropic Drug Prescription Patterns of Bipolar Disorder Patients with a History of Suicidal Attempts: Findings from the REAP-BD, Korea

Our study aimed to analyze the clinical characteristics and psychotropic prescription patterns of a history of suicide attempts in South Koreans with bipolar disorder (BD), by using only Korean data from the Research on Asian Psychotropic Prescription Pattern for Bipolar disorder. The patterns of clinical characteristics and psychotropic drug use were compared among 53 patients with a history of suicide attempts and 297 without this history; the potential effects of confounding variables were adjusted with binary logistic analyses for discrete variables and analyses of covariance for continuous variables. After adjusting the effects of age, sex, duration of illness, and enrollment as an outpatient, patients with a history of suicide attempts were characterized by a significantly more prevalent depressive episode, lower prevalent remission state, lower levels of hemoglobin, and more use of antidepressants, anxiolytics, and hypnotics compared to those without lifetime suicide attempt. The inability to plan goal-directed behavior may be an intervening factor in the relationship between suicide attempts and depression in BD. Relatively low hemoglobin levels can be associated with manic episodes in patients with a history of suicide attempts and the use of antidepressants, anxiolytics, or hypnotics can be associated with suicide attempts in BD patients.