BORDERLINE DISORDER IN TURKEY - A 2-YEAR TO 4-YEAR FOLLOW-UP

The present study aimed to investigate clinical, demographic and follo w-up features of borderline personality disorder (BPD) in Turkey. Amon g 738 inpatients consecutively admitted to a university psychiatric cl inic, we attempted to trace 75 patients diagnosed with BPD according t o DSM-III-R criteria 2- to 4-years after their index discharge. Of 61 patients who could be traced, 2 had committed suicide and 45 were incl uded in a follow-up study. A semi-structured interview confirmed the p revious diagnosis in all but two patients. The mean Global Assessment Scale score of the follow-up sample showed a 13.4% increase during the follow-up interval. Affective disorders were concomitantly diagnosed in 76.7% of the BPD patients, and the lifetime prevalence rate for thi s diagnostic category was estimated at 100%. Substances abuse disorder emerged as the second common Axis I diagnosis. The data obtained in t he present study were in agreement with findings of previous studies o n BPD conducted mostly in Western countries.