Stress factors in affective diseases.

An investigation carried out on 97 patients with affective disorders and on 100 healthy control subjects, revealed that acute and chronic stress factors occurred more in the group of patients with affective disorders than among healthy control over a similar time period. The frequency of stressful life situations was the same before the first affective episode in patients with unipolar and bipolar illness. The possible participation of such factors in triggering the first phase of illness is discussed. Similar factors appeared in both types of affective disorders. Significantly more frequent among patients than in the control group were: marital and family conflicts, health problems, emotional and ambitional failures, lack of success and work overload.