Bipolar II showed same CV risk factors as bipolar I

Researchers found no differences in cardiovascular risk factors between those with bipolar type I and bipolar type II disorders, according to data presented at the 2012 New Clinical Drug Evaluation Unit Annual Meeting in Phoenix.

Holly A. Swartz

Study researcher Holly A. Swartz, MD, of the University of Pittsburgh, said cardiovascular (CV) risk in patients with bipolar disorder (BP) is well established, and although BP type II is now recognized as a distinct phenotype, it is characterized by high levels of impairment in multiple domains that are comparable to BP type I.

“Previous studies have showed lower CV mortality in BP type II relative to BP type I, but no one has looked at CV risk factors in BP type II,” Swartz told Healio.com.

Swartz and colleagues analyzed data on 501 participants — 357 with BP type I and 144 with BP type II — aged 18 to 66 years who were enrolled in a previous clinical research program. They used linear regression models to compare weight, blood pressure, lipids and glucose between participants with BP type I and BP type II disorders. Participants were diagnosed using criteria from the DSM-IV.

Controlling for nicotine use, gender, income, marital status, psychiatric comorbidity, Clinical Global Depression-Severity scores and current medications, the researchers found that the mean BMI differed in the BP type I and BP type II cohorts (31.6 vs. 28.1), although there was no “significant difference between BP I and II disorders for any independent variable,” they wrote, adding that the mean BMI in the two cohorts were in the obese and overweight ranges.

“Based on these findings, we recommend routine screening and, when relevant, treatment of cardiovascular risk factors in individuals with bipolar II disorder,” Swartz said.

Swartz HA. Cardiovascular risk factors in individuals with bipolar II disorder. Presented at: the 2012 NewClinical Drug Evaluation Unit Annual Meeting; May 29-June 1, 2012; Phoenix.

Disclosure: Dr. Swartz reports receiving speakers’ fees from AstraZeneca, Sanofi-Aventis and Servier International.