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Unipolar vs. Bipolar Mania: A Review of 247 Patients

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 January 2018

Bruce Pfohl
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry, University of Iowa College of Medicine, Iowa City, Iowa 52240, USA
Ned Vasquez
Affiliation:
Second year medical student, University of Iowa College of Medicine
Henry Nasrallan
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry, University of Iowa College of Medicine, and Chief of the Psychiatry Service, at the VA Medical Center, Iowa City, Iowa, USA

Summary

Previous studies attempting to support unipolar mania as an entity distinct from bipolar disorder, have produced conflicting results. The present study reports on a chart review of 247 patients admitted to the University of Iowa with a history of at least one manic episode; 87 of these had apparently never experienced a depression. A subgroup of 92 patients, who met DSM III diagnostic criteria and had a history of at least two episodes of affective disorder, were also examined. There were few clinically meaningful differences between patients with unipolar mania and bipolar disorder on demographic, symptomatic, or familial variables. An earlier report that unipolar manics were more likely to be male and have a family history of unipolar depression was not confirmed. Unipolar mania is not supported as a separate entity from bipolar disorder.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Royal College of Psychiatrists, 1982 

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