![]() If you think you or a family member has bipolar disorder, call your doctor to get assessed. While there’s no cure for bipolar disorder, treatment can help prevent episodes and control their symptoms. But we have a poor understanding of what those might be.” Life experiences or other non-genetic factors may be involved. “Even in identical twins, who have identical genes,” McMahon says, “a third escape the illness for reasons we don’t understand. Research may also uncover ways to lower your risk for bipolar disorder. If scientists could identify the genetic changes that lead to bipolar disorder, they might eventually be able to design a more accurate test or better treatments for the disorder. McMahon says that many other genes must be involved as well. But the genes that researchers have found thus far collectively increase the risk of bipolar disorder by only about 10-20%. “We’ve found 3 or 4 genes that are consistently associated with bipolar disorder,” McMahon says. of people with and without bipolar disorder, searching for genetic variations-small genetic differences-that appear more often in people with the disorder. McMahon and his colleagues have been comparing the genomes The full set of all your genes. “That tells us that about two-thirds of the risk for bipolar disorder can be explained by genes,” McMahon says. Non-identical twins, who share only about half their DNA, tend to share bipolar disorder only about 20% of the time. Identical twins have identical DNA non-identical twins, like any siblings, share only about half their DNA., also has bipolar disorder 60-80% of the time. When an identical twin has bipolar disorder, their twin, who has the same inherited DNA A substance you inherit from your parents. Scientists know that bipolar disorder is largely genetic because of twin studies. “We’ve known for at least 50 years that the majority of bipolar disorder is caused by genes,” McMahon says, “but those genes have been remarkably difficult to pin down.” Scientists have also been finding clues in genes Stretches of DNA, a substance you inherit from your parents, that define characteristics such as how likely you are to get certain diseases. We see an increased activity in the amygdala in response to emotional triggers in the environment.” “It seems to be acting differently in bipolar disorder, in both adults and children. “The amygdala tells us what in our environment is emotionally important,” Leibenluft says. ![]() One area that seems to play a role in bipolar disorder is deep inside your brain: the amygdala. For example, people with the disorder seem to have different ways of perceiving emotions in others’ faces. Researchers are gaining new insights into what goes awry in the brains of people with bipolar disorder. “What’s debated is how common it is.” But the bottom line is that any child diagnosed with bipolar disorder needs help. “There really isn’t debate about whether there is bipolar disorder in children,” Leibenluft says. Ellen Leibenluft, whose work focuses on children, explains that a recent upsurge in diagnoses has led to controversy about whether children with severe irritability, but without clear episodes of mania, are being misdiagnosed as having bipolar disorder. ![]() Researchers estimate that bipolar disorder affects nearly 6 million American adults in a given year.Ĭhildren and teens can also have bipolar disorder. “There are a variety of illnesses that are similar to bipolar disorder, but with less severe upswings,” says NIMH’s Dr. “Or they do see it but they don’t care.”īipolar disorder is fairly common, but it’s difficult to tell exactly how widespread it is. Zarate of NIH’s National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). “They don’t see the consequences of their behaviors,” explains Dr. They might do things that make them lose their jobs, their spouse or all their money. They become impulsive and take great risks. They become more energetic and active than usual. People with bipolar disorder also go through periods of feeling unusually happy. They may try to hurt or even kill themselves. They have trouble concentrating, forget things and lose interest in fun activities. Sometimes people with bipolar disorder become very sad and much less active. These “mood episodes” can continue for a week or 2, and sometimes longer, with symptoms lasting every day for most of the day. People with bipolar disorder-also called manic-depressive illness-go through extreme changes in mood, energy and behavior. Not only can bipolar disorder damage relationships, affect your grades and make it hard to keep a job it can also be dangerous. But if these mood changes last for a week or more and are severe-making it hard for you to sleep, stay focused or go to work-it may be a sign of bipolar disorder. Most people feel happy and energized on some days and less so on others.
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