Clinical and familial profile of bipolar disorder with and without obsessive-compulsive disorder: an Indian study

Comorbid obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is common in bipolar disorder (BD). Clinical characteristics, functionality and familial pattern of this comorbidity are largely understudied.

To assess clinical profile, familial loading of psychiatric disorders and level of functioning in remitted BD patients who have comorbid OCD and to compare results with those of remitted BD patients without OCD.

Remitted BD-I subjects were assessed using the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Axis I Disorders, Global Assessment of Functioning Scale (GAF), Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS), Young Mania Rating Scale (YMRS), Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS) and Family Interview for Genetic Studies (FIGS). BD patients with and without OCD were compared. Group differences were analyzed using the chi-square test and the independent samples t test. Values <0.05 were considered statistically significant.

Of the 90 remitted BD-I patients, 35.5% (n=32) had obsessive-compulsive symptoms/OCD. The BD-OCD group showed significantly lower GAF scores, higher rates of suicidal attempts, hospitalizations, manic and depressive episodes compared to the group with BD only (p<0.05). In addition, first and second-degree relatives had higher rates of BD-OCD and OCD, but not of BD.

BD-OCD is characterized by more severe BD, more dysfunction and higher familial loading of BD-OCD and OCD. Larger studies involving relatives of probands will help to confirm our findings and to delineate nosological status of BD-OCD comorbidity.