Translational neuroscience in pediatric bipolar disorder

While controversial and often confounded with other forms of psychopathology, recent studies have shown that bipolar disorder (BD) is on the rise in children and adolescents. Research has made important strides in advancing our understanding of the phenomenology, neural underpinnings and treatment outcomes for BD youths. However, there is an increasing need to unite these domains to identify potential neural effects and predictors of treatment outcome. Pavuluri et al. have conducted such a study, evaluating the neural effects of divalproex or risperidone for pediatric BD. The future is likely to bring more of such studies, potentially resulting in a biomarker augmented approach to the diagnosis and treatment of pediatric BD.