Gildengers Ariel G, Mulsant Benoit H, Begley Amy E, McShea Mary, Stack Jacqueline A, Miller Mark D, Fagiolini Andrea, Kupfer David J, Young Robert C, Reynolds Charles F
Intervention Research Center for Late-Life Mood Disorders, Department of Psychiatry, the Bipolar Disorder Center for Pennsylvanians, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine 15213, USA.
Am J Geriatr Psychiatry. 2005 Apr;13(4):319-23. doi: 10.1176/appi.ajgp.13.4.319.
The authors sought to determine the feasibility of treating elderly adults with bipolar disorder under standardized-treatment conditions.
Thirty-one patients age 60 and older with bipolar disorder were treated in standardized pathways. Mood state was checked at each study visit with the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression-17 item (Ham-D-17) and the Young Mania Rating Scale (YMRS).
Defining "well days" as both Ham-D and YMRS scores of <or=10, the mean percentage of well days was 72.5 (range: 0%-100%) over study participation.
Treating older adults with bipolar disorder under standardized treatment is feasible and is associated with low symptom levels. However, most older adults with bipolar disorder do not experience sustained recovery.