Bipolar I, bipolar II, and nonbipolar major depression among the relatives of affectively ill probands

An earlier report described symptoms and background features in depressed probands grouped by polarity: bipolar I, bipolar II, and nonbipolar. The present study made similar comparisons among relatives with a lifetime history of major depression. The 73 relatives with bipolar II disorder had the highest rates of marital disruption, psychopathology in the previous month, nonserious suicide attempts, and nonaffective syndromes and were the youngest when first treated.