What is bipolar disorder?

Bipolar disorder, also called manicdepression, is a mental illness that is characterized by severe mood swings, repeated episodes of depression, and at least one episode of mania. Bipolar disorder is one kind of mood disorder that afflicts more than 1% of adults in the United States, up to as many as 4 million people. Here are some additional statistics about bipolar disorder:

• Bipolar disorder is the fifth leading cause of disability worldwide.
• Bipolar disorder is the ninth leading cause of years lost to death or disability worldwide.
• The number of individuals with bipolar disorder who commitsuicide is 60 times higher than that of the general population.
• People who have bipolar disorder are at a higher risk of also suffering from substance abuse and other mental healthproblems.
• Males may develop bipolar disorder earlier in life compared to females.

What are bipolar disorder symptoms and signs?

In order to qualify for the diagnosis of bipolar disorder, a person must experience at least one manic episode. Symptoms of mania must last at least a week (unless it is a mixed episode) and include

• elevated, expansive, or irritable mood;
• racing thoughts;
• pressured speech (rapid, excessive speech);
• decreased need for sleep;
• grandiose beliefs (for example, feeling like one has super powers or superlative talents or faults);
• tangential speech (repeatedly changing topics to topics that are hardly related);
• increased goal directed activity;
• impulsivity and poor judgment.

Symptoms of the manic episode of early onset bipolar disorder tend to include outbursts of anger and rage, as well as irritability, as opposed to the expansive, excessively elevated mood seen in adults. The adolescent with bipolar disorder is more likely to exhibit depression and mixed episodes, with rapid changes in mood. Despite differences in the symptoms of bipolar disorder in children and adolescents compared to adults, many who are diagnosed with certain kinds of bipolar disorder before adulthood continue to have those symptoms as adults.

What is autism?

Autism is a developmental disorder that is characterized by impaired development in communication, social interaction, and behavior. Autism afflicts one out of every 100 to 166 children and it affects the lives of many children and their families (DiCicco-Bloom et al, 2006). It tends to affect about five boys to every one girl (First, 2008). Autism is classified as a pervasive developmental disorder (PDD), a category of disorders that is often described interchangeably with the broad spectrum of developmental disorders affecting young children and adults called the autistic spectrum disorders (ASD). The range of these disorders varies from severely impaired individuals with autism to other individuals who have abnormalities of social interaction but normal intelligence--Asperger's syndrome. The ways in which autism is exhibited can differ greatly. Additionally, autism can be found in association with other disorders such as mental retardation and certain medical conditions. The degree of autism can range from mild to severe. Mildly affected individuals may appear very close to normal. Severely afflicted individuals may have an extreme intellectual disability and unable to function in almost any setting.

In the past, autism has been confused with childhood schizophrenia or childhood psychosis, and may have been misunderstood as schizotypal personality disorder in some adults. As additional research information about autism becomes available, the scope and definition of the condition continues to become more refined. Some of the past confusion about the disorder has been resolved.

What are the symptoms of autism?

The current Diagnosis and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-Fourth Edition, Treatment Revision (DSM-IV-TR) identifies three features that are associated with autism:

• impairment in social interaction,
  
• communication, and
  
• behavior.