Mental illness linked to parents

Children of bipolar parents have a 13-fold increased chance of suffering the same problem or other psychiatric disorders themselves, a study has shown.

A team of psychiatrists assessed two groups of children aged six to 18 for signs of bipolar disorder – formally known as manic depression – or other problems such as mood or anxiety disorders.

One group of 388 children had mothers or fathers with bipolar disorder. The other group of 251 had parents with no mental health problems.

A total of 10.6% of children with bipolar parents were positively tested for bipolar disorder or mood and anxiety disorders. In comparison, just 0.8% of children of mentally healthy parents had psychiatric conditions.

Children in families where both parents had bipolar disorder were more likely to develop the illness than those with just one bipolar parent.

The study, reported in the journal Archives of General Psychiatry, found that bipolar parents recognised early symptoms in their children.

Dr Boris Birmaher, from the University of Pittsburgh, US, and colleagues wrote: "Consistent with the literature, most parents with bipolar disorder recollected that their illness started before age 20 years and about 20% had illness that started before age 13 years.

"In contrast, most of their children developed their first bipolar disorder episode before age 12 years, suggesting the possibility that parents were more perceptive of their children’s symptoms early in life or perhaps that bipolar disorder has more penetrance and manifests earlier in new generations."

They added: "Clinicians who treat adults with bipolar disorder should question those who are parents about their children’s psychopathology to offer prompt identification and early interventions for any psychiatric problems that may be affecting the children’s functioning, particularly early-onset bipolar disorder."

(Source: Mental Health Foundation UK: Archives of General Psychiatry: April 2009)