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Substance Use Disorders in Adolescents with Bipolar Disorder: A Developmental Approach to Assessment and Treatment
Lisa R Fortuna1, Suren Najaryan1, Edder Duarte1
1Department of Psychiatry and Neuroscience, School of Medicine, University of California Riverside, 900 University Avenue, Riverside, CA 92521, USA.
Abstract:
Substance use disorders (SUDs) are highly prevalent and clinically consequential among adolescents with bipolar disorder, yet they remain insufficiently addressed in both research and clinical practice. Youth with bipolar spectrum disorders are substantially vulnerable tor early substance initiation, rapid escalation to problematic use, and progression to SUDs compared with peers without mood disorders. Comorbid substance use complicates diagnostic assessment, exacerbates mood instability, increases suicide risk, and contributes to significant family, academic, and social impairment. Adolescence represents a critical developmental window in which neurobiological maturation, heightened reward sensitivity, and increasing autonomy intersect with the onset of bipolar illness and substance exposure.
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