Apolipoprotein E genotype is not associated with cognitive impairment in older adults with bipolar disorder

Abstract

APOE*4 is not associated with the diagnosis of BD and does not impact the occurrence of dementia in BD. Given the distinct clinical and biological features of cognitive impairment in BD, we hypothesized that dementia in BD is unrelated to AD pathological mechanisms.

Mood disorders in the elderly: prevalence, functional impact, and management challenges

“…Two recent studies conducted in our group demonstrated that older, cognitively impaired, BD patients do not display a significant effect of the apolipoprotein E*4 allele,61 or the pathological markers of AD in the cerebrospinal fluid62 – the so-called “pathological signature” of AD in the cerebrospinal fluid, which is defined by reduced concentrations of the Aβ peptide along with increased total Tau and phosphorylated Tau 62,63. These findings suggest that the dementing process in BD follows a distinct biological route compared to AD, which is compatible with the distinct pattern observed in clinical progression of neuropsychological deficits.…”

Measurement tools for assessment of older age bipolar disorder: A systematic review of the recent global literature

“…We found 53 articles on OABD in the last 6 years . Of those, 50 (94%) papers examined clinical samples ranging from 10 to 315 subjects (total of 3302 subjects, mean ± standard deviation (SD) 62.3 ± 51.5 subjects/paper, median 53 subjects/paper).…”

“…All studies ( n = 53) reported age and gender. Levels of education were the next most often reported ( n = 34 studies, 64%), followed by ethnicity ( n = 23, 43%) and marital status ( n = 17, 32%) …”

“…For manic symptoms, the Young Mania Rating Scale (YMRS) was mostly widely used ( n = 29, 55%) . Several scales for depressive symptoms were used, such as the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale ( n = 21, 40%), and the Montgomery‐Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS) ( n = 8, 15%), with only one study using a mood chart . Only three studies assessed for a history of psychotic symptoms (6%), and only one study reported the use of a psychotic symptom severity measure (2%) (Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale, and Scale for the Assessment of Negative Symptoms) …”

“…Twenty‐three studies (43%) included details on patients’ pharmacological treatment, which was usually self‐reported or corroborated with chart data. Current use of medication was often reported for anticonvulsants ( n = 14, 26%), antipsychotics ( n = 23, 43%), antidepressants ( n = 23, 43%), benzodiazepines ( n = 13, 25%) and lithium ( n = 23, 43%) . Some studies gave information about the number of years of lithium exposure ( n = 6, 11%) and exposure to other drugs ( n = 3).…”