ABSTRACT
Objective@#This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of medication therapy combined with transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) in improving problem-solving and emotion regulation abilities of patients with bipolar disorder (BD) type I. @*Methods@#This is a randomized clinical trial conducted on 30 patients with BD I, randomly assigned into two groups of Medication (n = 15, receiving mood stabilizers including 2−5 tablets of lithium 300 mg, sodium valproate 200 mg, and carbamazepine 200 mg) and Medication + tDCS (n = 15, receiving mood stabilizers plus tDCS with 2 mA intensity over the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex for 10 days, two sessions per day each for 20 minutes). The Tower of London (TOL) test and Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (ERQ) were used for assessments before, immediately, and 3 months after interventions. @*Results@#There was a significant difference between groups in total ERQ (p = 0.001) and its cognitive reappraisal domain (p = 0.000) which were increased, but the difference was not significant in its expressive suppression domain (p ＞ 0.05). After 3 months, their level decreased. In examining problem-solving variable, the combined therapy could significantly reduce only the total number of errors under TOL test (p = 0.00), but it remained unchanged after 3 months. @*Conclusion@#Medication therapy plus tDCS is effective in improving problem-solving and emotional regulation (cognitive reappraisal) skills of patients with BD I.
ABSTRACT
The Bipolar Depression Rating Scale is an instrument to measure depression severity in patients diagnosed with bipolar disorder. This study has reevaluated the psychometric values of the Bipolar Depression Rating Scale through assessing an Iranian sample of patients with bipolar depression. A total of 60 patients [36 males and 24 females] with bipolar depression referred to four medical centers in Tehran, Iran were interviewed with the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV axis I Disorders, Young Mania Rating Scale, center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale, and the Bipolar Depression Rating Scale. Internal consistency and inter-rater reliability of the Bipolar Depression Rating Scale, and Pearson's correlation coefficient between the Bipolar Depression Rating Scale and Young Mania Rating Scale/Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale were calculated. The Cronbach's alpha coefficient was 0.81. The Pearson's correlation coefficients of the Bipolar Depression Rating Scale with the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale and Young Mania Rating Scale were 0.73 and-0.82, respectively. The correlation coefficients between the two raters for the total score of the Bipolar Depression Rating Scale according to the Pearson's correlation and intraclass correlation tests were 0.83 and 0.89, respectively. The Bipolar Depression Rating Scale is a reliable and valid instrument to use in studies on Iranian clinical patients with bipolar depression