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Axis I diagnostic comorbidity and borderline personality disorder
1Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, Brown University School of Medicine, Rhode Island Hospital, Providence, USA.
Comprehensive Psychiatry
|July 31, 1999
Summary
Patients with borderline personality disorder (PD) frequently have multiple other mental health conditions. Thorough evaluations are crucial for identifying and treating these co-occurring axis I disorders in individuals with borderline PD.
Area of Science:
- Psychiatry
- Clinical Psychology
- Mental Health Research
Background:
- Borderline personality disorder (PD) is extensively studied, with known links to specific Axis I disorders like eating disorders, mood disorders, and substance use disorders.
- Limited research exists on the comprehensive comorbidity of borderline PD with all Axis I disorder classes assessed concurrently.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the relationship between borderline PD and the overall comorbidity across all classes of Axis I disorders.
- To determine if patients diagnosed with borderline PD exhibit a higher prevalence of multiple Axis I diagnoses compared to non-borderline PD patients.
Main Methods:
- A study involving 409 patients who underwent semistructured diagnostic interviews for both Axis I and Axis II disorders.
- Comparison of Axis I diagnostic counts between patients with and without a borderline PD diagnosis.
Main Results:
- Patients with borderline PD received significantly more current Axis I diagnoses (3.4 vs. 2.0) than those without.
- Borderline PD patients were twice as likely to have three or more current Axis I disorders (69.5% vs. 31.1%) and nearly four times as likely to have four or more (47.5% vs. 13.7%).
- Specific disorders more frequent in borderline PD patients included major depressive disorder (MDD), bipolar disorders, panic disorder, phobias, PTSD, OCD, eating disorder NOS, and somatoform disorders.
Conclusions:
- Borderline PD is strongly associated with a higher burden of multiple Axis I disorders, spanning mood, anxiety, substance use, eating, and somatoform categories.
- These findings underscore the necessity of comprehensive Axis I assessments in borderline PD patients to identify treatable conditions.