Psychopathology among children of manic-depressive patients

Twenty-seven individuals with bipolar illness were interviewed concerning their children who were between the ages of 6 and 18 years. The structured interview included items concerning the behavior of the child during the previous year, as well as items concerning events which may have affected the child. Of 49 children, 4 were considered to have an affective disorder and 18 were considered to have an undiagnosed disorder. A child was more likely to have a disorder if the natural parents were divorced. This difference was significant. When the child was living with both natural parents, the presence of a mental illness in the nonproband parent did not increase the likelihood of illness in the child. This difference was significant. The presence of illness in the child did not seem to be related to the severity of bipolar illness in the proband parent.