Four-Year Longitudinal Course of Children and Adolescents With Bipolar Spectrum Disorders: The Course and Outcome of Bipolar Youth (COBY) Study

Abstract

Objective: The authors sought to assess the longitudinal course of youths with bipolar spectrum disorders over a 4-year period.Method: At total of 413 youths (ages 7–17 years) with bipolar I disorder (N=244), bipolar II disorder (N=28), and bipolar disorder not otherwise specified (N=141) were enrolled in the study. Symptoms were ascertained retrospectively on average every 9.4 months for 4 years using the Longitudinal Interval Follow-Up Evaluation. Rates and time to recovery and recurrence and week-by-week symptomatic status were analyzed.Results: Approximately 2.5 years after onset of their index episode, 81.5% of the participants had fully recovered, but 1.5 years later 62.5% had a syndromal recurrence, particularly depression. One-third of the participants had one syndromal recurrence, and 30% had two or more. The polarity of the index episode predicted that of subsequent episodes. Participants were symptomatic during 60% of the follow-up period, particularly with subsyndromal symptoms of depression a...