RESUMEN
OBJECTIVES: The Mood Disorder Questionnaire (MDQ) has been validated as a diagnostic screening instrument for the detection of patients with bipolar disorder, but some patients with bipolar disorder obtain false negative screens. So we investigated demographic and clinical characteristics in false-negative MDQ in bipolar patients. METHODS: The participants were 60 DSM-IV bipolar outpatients in remission. All completed the Korean version of the Mood Disorder Questionnaire (K-MDQ) and the Korean version of the Beck Cognitive Insight Scale (K-BCIS) and were assessed by a trained clinician on the Young Mania Rating Scale, the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale and the Global Assessment of Functioning scale. The patients were categorized into two groups according to their K-MDQ score excluding further two questions (MDQ > or =7 : K-MDQ-positives and MDQ <7 : K-MDQ-negatives). Differences in demographic and clinical characteristics between these two groups were analyzed. RESULTS: There were no statistically significant differences between K-MDQ-positives and K-MDQ-negatives on the demographic and clinical variables, except on the K-BCIS where K-MDQ-negatives reported significantly lower scores on the K-BCIS composite index and self-reflectiveness subscale. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that lack of insight is a confounding factor in screening for bipolar disorder using the K-MDQ.