Impairment of C ognition in patients of B ipolar disorder in E uthymia in Indian population

ABSTRACT

Background: Bipolar disorder is one of the common mental disorders(CMD) in India. It leads to significant cognitive deficit even during the period of euthymia. So, it is important to identify the various cognitive deficits in euthymic bipolar disorder patients in Indian population. Methods: The study was conducted over a period of 2 years in AIIMS Jodhpur, Rajasthan. 30 cases and 30 controls were selected. Cases were selected by administering Hamilton dep ression rating scale (HAM - D) and Young mania rating scale (YMRS) to the bipolar disorder patient, recruited from Psychiatry OPD, to select the patients who were in euthymia. Cognitive domains such as attention, memory, fluency, language and Visuospatial we re tested in both the groups and compared. Kruskal - Wallis test was employed to compare the 2 sample groups for different variables. In this study we wanted to observe the decline in cognitive function in healthy vs euthymic bipolar disorder patients and to know the various domains of cognition that are affected. Results: This study shows a presence of cognitive decline in euthymic bipolar disorder patients as compared to controls. A significant difference was found in all the cognitive domains namely atte ntion, memory, fluency, language and visuospatial between cases and controls. Conclusion: This study shows a positive correlation between cognitive decline and bipolar patients during the period of euthymia. This suggests that even though the bipolar disor der patient is in remission, there is still a residual effect on cognition during euthymic state which can eventually affect the day to day life and can hamper the quality of life.