Bipolar Disorder: A Web of Information, Treatment, and Support
Once known as manic-depressive illness and still sometimes called by that name, bipolar disorder affects an estimated 5.7 million adults. Teens and children are being diagnosed with bipolar disorder more frequently, too. There is no cure for the disorder, but it can be managed with a combination of medicine and therapy.
Expand All Guide SectionsAbout Bipolar Disorder
Bipolar disorder is marked by extreme changes in mood. People with bipolar disorder experience ... read more »
Causes, Symptoms, and Diagnosis of Bipolar Disorder
The exact cause of bipolar disorder is unknown, but researchers theorize that a mix of family ... read more »
Treating Bipolar Disorder
Medication is the starting point for any bipolar treatment. Lithium is a medication that has been ... read more »
Living with Bipolar Disorder
Bipolar disorder is a difficult condition to manage. According to Mental Health America ... read more »
Bipolar Disorder Support
Though the number of people with bipolar disorder may seem small, there is a large online community ... read more »
Bipolar Disorder News and Research
There is no shortage of research being done on bipolar disorder, including genetic studies and brain imaging exams. The sites in this section can help you keep abreast of new developments or therapies by furnishing news articles about the disorder, along with published studies on the latest research.
Dulcinea's Insight
- If you’ve been diagnosed with bipolar disorder, discuss findings that interest you with your doctor. Sometimes “translation,” or the moving of lab research into common medical practice, can take years, but communication may help decrease that lag.
- Although there are no journals dedicated to bipolar disorder, research about it shows up in journals on psychiatry, psychology, and medicine. Most journals can be accessed only by buying expensive subscriptions, but there are some free resources. Stanford University’s Pediatric Bipolar Disorders Program, described further below, publishes the program’s research online without charging a subscription fee.
Dulcinea's Picks
For news on bipolar disorder …
Medscape
has a good section of bipolar-related headlines from the news service Reuters, despite the site’s financial support from GlaxoSmithKline, maker of the bipolar medication Lamictal. You must register (it’s free) to access the content.
Psychiatric Times
has freely available articles on bipolar disorder—plug the term into the search box on the right side of the page, then click “Psychiatric Times only.” Some are very technical; others, such as an article on involving family in a bipolar patient’s therapy are less so.
Pendulum
has a frequently updated collection of news related to bipolar disorder. Articles are summarized from academic organizations’ press releases or news stories, often with a link to the original source.
To read research on bipolar disorder …
The National Institute of Mental Health
has conducted a massive, long-term study involving thousands of people with bipolar disorder. NIMH designed STEP-BD, or Systematic Treatment Enhancement Program for Bipolar Disorder, to determine the best combination of treatments to prevent manic and depressive episodes. Read more about the results here.
Johns Hopkins Medicine
is conducting genetic research on mood disorders and presents its work in the “BioinforMOODics” page. On the lower left-hand side of the page there are links to Johns Hopkins’s Mood Disorders Program and other Hopkins research into bipolar disorder and depression.
NARSAD
(formerly known as the National Alliance for Research on Schizophrenia and Depression) has a catalog of the bipolar research it is funding. Click on each investigator’s name for information on the project.
To read research on juvenile bipolar disorder …
The Stanford Pediatric Bipolar Disorders Program
has journal articles about the research conducted there. Scroll down the page to see the articles, which can be accessed for free. Near the bottom of the page are links to press releases and media articles about bipolar disorder in children.
The Juvenile Bipolar Research Foundation
has a free, publicly accessible library of documents relating to bipolar research, along with information on clinical trials.
© 2010 Dulcinea Media, Inc.
