Web-based integrated bipolar parenting intervention for parents with bipolar disorder: a randomised controlled pilot...

Area of Science:

• Psychiatry and Mental Health
• Parenting Interventions
• Digital Health

Background:

• Bipolar disorder (BD) presents unique parenting challenges due to mood fluctuations affecting communication, impulse control, and motivation.
• A novel web-based intervention, the Integrated Bipolar Parenting Intervention (IBPI), was developed to support parents with BD.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the feasibility and preliminary clinical outcomes of the IBPI for parents with BD.
• To evaluate the impact of IBPI on child behavior, parenting competence, parenting stress, family functioning, and parent mood.

Main Methods:

• A randomized controlled trial comparing IBPI plus treatment as usual (TAU) against a waitlist control (WL) group.
• Participants were parents with BD and children aged 3-10 years.
• Feasibility assessed via recruitment, retention, and web usage; clinical outcomes measured at multiple time points up to 48 weeks.

Main Results:

• High retention rates (98% to end of intervention, 90% to final follow-up).
• Significant improvements in child behavior, parenting sense of competence, and parenting stress for the IBPI group compared to WL, sustained to 48 weeks.
• No significant impact on family functioning, parent mood, or time to mood relapse.

Conclusions:

• The IBPI is a feasible online self-management support tool for parents with bipolar disorder.
• Promising improvements in parenting and child behavior outcomes suggest potential benefits.
• Further definitive clinical and cost-effectiveness trials are warranted to confirm these findings.