Are there attentional deficits in people putatively at risk for affective disorders?

Schizophrenia is associated with attentional dysfunctions. In bipolar disorder, there is also evidence for sustained attention deficits. Therefore, we hypothesized that risk for bipolar disorder but not for unipolar depression might be associated with attentional abnormalities as well.

Using the Hypomanic Personality Scale (HPS) and the Rigidity Scale, we defined three groups: bipolar at-risk (n=42), unipolar at-risk (n=34), and control (n=37). All completed the d2 Test and the Continuous Performance Test (CPT).

There was no evidence for overall attentional deficits in people at risk for affective disorders. However, reduced sensitivity, i.e., less discrimination between targets and nontargets, was observed in people at risk for bipolar disorders who also displayed schizotypy.

We only looked at selective and sustained attention and did not assess other factors such as memory or executive functions. Additionally, the risk status was only defined by a psychometric indicator and did not include other approaches of defining risk (e.g., first-degree relatives).

Despite some limitations, our results support on one hand the idea that vulnerability for bipolar disorder can be associated with cognitive impairments, but they also highlight that this is not generally the case. Vulnerability for bipolar disorder and schizotypy might be correlated but are not the same.