Comorbidity occurrences of psychiatric disorders in adults with primary diagnosis of Bipolar Disorders I and II

The purpose of this study was to investigate the occurrence of comorbid psychiatric disorders in adults with a primary DSM--IV--TR diagnosis of Bipolar Disorders I and II, as well as explore the ratio of both diagnoses to each other. Disorders within the Bipolar spectrum are frequently associated with co-occurring psychiatric symptomatology in children and adults. One thousand thirty-five charts of adult psychiatric outpatients, ages 18--65, with a DSM--IV diagnosis of Bipolar I and II Disorders, were reviewed in order to gain insight into the co-occurrence of psychiatric disorders in this patient population. Study results showed comorbid disorders to be prevalent in almost half those diagnosed with Bipolar I Disorder, yet nearly nonexistent in patients having been diagnosed as Bipolar II. Substance Abuse Disorder was found to have the highest comorbid prevalence in men and women, followed by ADHD, Panic Disorder, and Generalized Anxiety Disorder, respectively.