CHILDHOOD BEHAVIOR PROBLEMS AND BIPOLAR DISORDER - RELATIONSHIP OR COINCIDENCE

A group of offspring at risk for Bipolar Disorder is compared to a Nor mal Control group whose patients had no psychiatric disorder and a gro up of offspring at risk for other, non-bipolar psychiatric disorder. V ariables examined include childhood attention and behavior problems an d psychopathology in young adulthood. Rates of childhood behavior and attention problems, and psychopathology and social/occupational impair ment in young adulthood, were higher in the Bipolar Risk group than th e Normal Control group, but no higher than in the non-bipolar (Combine d Risk) group. Although childhood behavior and attention problems were significantly associated with other psychopathology in all three offs pring groups, a unique relationship between childhood problems and you ng adult mood disorder was found only in the Bipolar Risk group.