Bipolar Disorder Among Children Increasing in USA, Australia

More children in Australia are being diagnosed with bi-polar disorder, according to a report in the Queensland Courier-Mail. "We are seeing more students with the light gone out of their eyes," said psychiatrist Gordon Parker, "and more students who are behaving erratically."

Professor Parker said that bipolar disorder seems to be increasing in both Australia and the United States. He links the increase to parents who are older when they have their first child and to changes in children's diets.

Bipolar disorder involves periods of mania alternating with severe depression. Symptoms usually begin between ages 15 and 18 years old, although more American children are being diagnosed as young as age two.

It can be extremely difficult to diagnose mental illnesses in children. Dr. Janet Wozniak, director of the pediatric bipolar disorder program at Massachusetts General Hospital, notes that three of the seven symptoms for bipolar disorder are also signs of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. Many children have several diagnoses and are prescribed multiple medications by the time they are in their teens.

Some experts believe that bipolar disorder is over-diagnosed and is actually uncommon in children under 10 years old. Dr. Gabrielle Carlson, director of child and adolescent psychiatry at the Stony Brook University School of Medicine, said that many explosive and aggressive children who are labeled bipolar are truly "diagnostically homeless."

The number of doctor visits for children and teens with bipolar disease increased by forty times between 1994 and 2003 in the United States. One international survey of school principals indicates that one in five students needs mental health services or emotional support.

Labels: bipolar_disorder, diagnosis, mental_health