Familial load of psychiatric disorders and overall functioning in patients newly diagnosed with bipolar disorder and their unaffected first-degree relatives

Kimie Stefanie Ormstrup Sletved*, Katrine Maiggaard, Anne Amalie Elgaard Thorup, Lars Vedel Kessing, Maj Vinberg

*Corresponding author af dette arbejde

Publikation: Bidrag til tidsskriftTidsskriftartikelForskningpeer review

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Abstract

Background: Overall functioning is already impaired in patients newly diagnosed with bipolar disorder (BD) and, to a lesser degree, also in their unaffected first-degree relatives (UR). Further, aggregation of psychiatric disorders among the patients’ first-degree relatives seems to be associated with higher illness burden and poorer prognosis. However, whether this aggregation of psychiatric disorders among first-degree relatives, the familial load (FL), impacts overall functioning in patients newly diagnosed with BD and their UR remains unresolved. Methods: In total, 388 patients newly diagnosed with BD, 144 of their UR and 201 healthy control individuals were included. Overall functioning was assessed using three different assessment methods: The interviewer based “Functioning Assessment Short Test” (FAST), the questionnaire “Work and Social Adjustment Scale” (WSAS) and six outcome measures covering the participants’ socio-economic status (SES); educational achievement, employment, work ability, relationship, cohabitation and marital status. Familial load of psychiatric disorder was assessed using the “Family History Research Diagnostic Criteria” interview. Associations between FL and overall functioning in patients and UR were investigated categorically using logistic and continuously in linear regression models. Results: Contrasting with the hypotheses, the FL of psychiatric disorders was not associated with impaired overall functioning, neither in patients newly diagnosed with BD nor in their UR. Conclusion: The findings indicate that impaired functioning in the early phase of BD is not associated with aggregation of psychiatric disorders among first-degree relatives. The observed functional impairment in patients newly diagnosed with BD seems driven by the personal impact of the disorder rather than the impact of having first-degree relatives with psychiatric disorders. Keywords: bipolar disorder, first-degree relatives, familial load of psychiatric disorders, functioning, socio-economic status.

OriginalsprogEngelsk
Artikelnummer28
TidsskriftInternational Journal of Bipolar Disorders
Vol/bind10
ISSN2194-7511
DOI
StatusUdgivet - 2022

Bibliografisk note

Funding Information:
The study is funded by grants from the Mental Health Services, Capital Region of Denmark, The Danish Council for Independent Research, Medical Sciences (DFF-4183-00570), Weimanns Fund, Markedsmodningsfonden (the Market Development Fund 2015-10), Gangstedfonden (A29594), Helsefonden (16-B-0063), Innovation Fund Denmark (the Innovation Fund, Denmark, 5164-00001B), Copenhagen Center for Health Technology (CACHET), EU H2020 ITN (EU project 722561), Augustinusfonden (16-0083), Lundbeck Foundation (R215-2015-4121).

Publisher Copyright:
© 2022, The Author(s).

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